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FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



BEING 



An Introduction to the French Language. 



BY 



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P. F. de GOURNAY. 



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BALTIMORE: 
PUBLISHED BY KELLY & PIET, 

No. 1Y4 Baltimore Street. 
1866. 



.(U3 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, by 

KELLY & PIET, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the 

District of Maryland. 



/ 




PREFACE 



WHY THIS LITTLE BOOK WAS WRITTEN. 

So many "Methods" and "Systems" of learning 
the French language have been published, and are 
used satisfactorily in our best educational institu- 
tions, that it seems superfluous to write anything 
more on the subject. During my experience as a 
teacher of French, however, a fact has forced itself 
upon my mind ; it is that whilst the pupils who had 
been using these methods had become ready trans- 
lators, their enunciation had remained, as a general 
case, very defective. Trying to remedy this, I 
have come to the following conclusions : 

Whilst the object of those various systems is to 
make the student's progress rapid, and his task 
interesting, by storing his mind with ready-made 
sentences, so arranged as to enable him, gradually, 
to express his thoughts, and to become familiar 



PREFACE. 



with the rules of the language, sufficient attention 
is not given to the all important part of pronuncia- 
tion. He reads words which he is often at loss 
how to speak, and, sometimes, unable to recognize 
when he hears them spoken. 

Value, Pinney, and some others, precede their 
course of lessons with a synopsis of the rules of 
pronunciation ; but, strange to say, these rules, by 
which a considerable number of new sounds must 
be learned, are given together, whilst the greatest 
care has been taken to arrange the idiomatic and 
grammatical part of the book in gradual lessons. 
Let us take the first lessons in Ollendorff, consist- 
ing in a few easy sentences, and we find some of 
the most difficult sounds in the French language 
brought together, and to be exercised upon, with- 
out any other clue to their pronunciation than the 
enumeration of over fifty sounds, or rules for pro- 
ducing sounds, which the student may or may not 
have memorized. The application is left to the 
teacher. Would it not be more in keeping with 
the "system" itself, to teach the sounds gradually ? 

The child learns to speak his mother tongue 
before he learns to read. He learns the sounds by 



PREFACE. 



which objects are designated, and, gradually, the 
sounds by which to express thoughts connecting 
these objects. It is the oral system in all its sim- 
plicity. Later, when he takes to book study, it is 
to learn how to correct his speech, not how to speak. 
And to do this, he must learn first his letters, the 
signs by which the sounds are spelled. 

The Anglo-Saxon living among French people, 
and hearing no other language than the French 
spoken, would follow the same process as the 
child ; but, when he merely devotes a few hours 
daily to the study of a language other than his 
own, he must be subjected simultaneously to 

The training of the tongue ; that is, speaking, 
or how to pronounce the sounds ; 

The training of the ears ; otherwise hearing, 
or how to recognize the sounds when heard ; 

And, the training of the eyes, the active agents 
of memory ; that is, reading, or how to recognize 
the signs by which the new sounds are repre- 
sented. 

This threefold task I have attempted to prepare 
in short, progressive lessons, exercising the pupil 
only on a small number of sounds and combina- 



PREFACE. 



tions of letters at one time. A few grammatical 
rules are introduced, to enable him to form simple 
sentences. In this latter part, the teacher will use 
his own discretion in exercising the pupil. 

My little book, then, is not introduced as a new 
method by which to learn the French language, 
but, as its title claims, as an introductory chapter 
which may precede any of the good systems in 
use, and which, upon fair trial, will be found to 
facilitate the student's progress. 

In this country, the study of modern languages 
is conducted pretty much like that of the classics, 
except that less attention is given to the former; 
but both result in mere book learning — sufficient 
to read understanding!} 7 a foreign book, but not 
enough to converse fluently. The want of prac- 
tice has much to do with this, and students cannot 
be too strongly urged to seek every opportunity to 
hear French spoken and to speak it. 

I mark a striking contrast between the enuncia- 
tion of English people and that of Americans, 
when speaking French. The former drawl their 
words, exaggerating the vowel sounds ; the latter, 
with characteristic go-ahead habit, shorten these 



PREFACE. 



sounds and frequently run, as it were, syllable into 
syllable. Thus, an Englishman will pronounce the 
idiomatic sentence "Comment vous portez-vous ?" 
"Comang, voo por-tay voo ?" dwelling on each 
syllable as if it were a distinct word ; whilst the 
American will say "Come vo porte vo," ignoring 
two of the syllables and shortening the sound of 
ou into that of brief o. The former's defect can 
be corrected much more easily than the latter^, 
and I would recommend to students to open the 
mouth wider than when speaking English, and give 
the full sound of the vowels. 

The seeming rapidity of enunciation of French 
people arises from the suppression of the faint e 
sound ; the uniform accentuation of the vowels a, 
i, o, u; the fact that fewer final consonants are 
articulated in French, and the suppression of the 
vibrating sound of m and n in nasal sounds. If 
the student will remember these few short rules, 
he will find it much less difficult to acquire a clear 
and correct diction. 



FIRST LESSON 



l « » »>» i 



SIMPLE SOUNDS. 



Our first step in the study of a language must 
necessarily be to learn its alphabet, the signs by 
which its sounds are expressed. 

In all languages, the vowels are the original 
sounds, from which the consonants derive theirs, 
as well as the names by which they are designated. 
If, then, we know the sounds of the vowels, we can 
easily learn the names of the consonants derived 
from them respectively. 

In English the names of all the consonants are 
formed from three vowel sounds. 

A forms h, j, k, r. 

E forms b, c, d, f, g, 1, m, n, p, s, t, v, x, z. 

U forms q and w. 

In French, besides these three vowels, i forms 
two consonants : 

A (pronounced like the English a in father,) 
forms the names of the consonants fa (as/i,) and k 
(kah.) 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 9 

E (pronounced ay) forms b (bay,) c (say,) d (day,) 
f > g (*ayO 1* m 5 n, p (pay,) r (cr,) s, t (fay,) v (mi/,) 
z (zed.) 

Note. — f, 1, m, n, s, same names as in English^ 
but sounded more open. 

I (pronounced ee, as in bee,) forms j (zee.) and 
x (ix.) 

U forms q. This vowel has a peculiar sound, 
not to be found in English. It is the stumbling- 
block of Anglo-Saxons. The pupil must learn it 
from the teacher; it is pronounced by bringing out 
the lips, as if to whistle or pout, and letting the 
sound escape with a slight vibration, as it is emitted 
from the throat. 

W does not properly belong to the French 
alphabet ; it is used only in words of foreign ori- 
gin, and is called double v, instead of double u. — 
Some grammarians say it should be pronounced 
like v, but it is more generally given its English 
sound. 

It will be seen, from what precedes, that, with 
the exception of j, r, and x, the French consonants 
derive their names from the same vowels as the 
English. These three exceptions being borne in 
mind, the student can have no trouble in remem- 
bering the names of the consonants. 



10 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

F'IRST EXERCISE. 

(spell the words.) 

Ab eb ib ob ub ac ec ic oc uc yc ad ed id 
od af ef if of uf ag eg ig og ug al el il ol ul 
yl ma na pa ba ca co cu ra ro ru ri ry no ni 
nu pu tu su fu ta ti to tu at et it ot ut va vi 
vo vu vy iv ev ov uv xa xi xo xu za zi zo zu 
ez ex. 

Aba eba iba oba uba aca eca ica ico icu yc 
afa efi ofu ufu iga igo egu eco rata sapa mila 
nat mat met tor tar ter sat fur for mil nyl pur 
mur sur fir par por lar ral raf ref rif. 

Bra bre bri bro bru era ere cri cro cry cru 
dra dre dri dro dru gra gre gri gro gru pra pri 
pro pru spa spi spo spu psa psi pso psu vra vri 
vro vru. 

Jab jeb jib job jub jar jer jir jos jut jap jef 
jir jak jek kij koj juk jal jel jil jol jul maj mej 
mij moj muj naj nej nij noj nuj. 



Second Lesson. 

SIMPLE SOUNDS. 

The vowels a, i, y, and u, unless combined with 
another vowel to form a "compound vowel sound," 
or with a consonant, to form a "nasal sound," 



FIRST STEPS IK FRENCH. 11 

never lose their original sound, which is simply pro- 
nounced long or short, by dwelling more or less 
on it. 

The vowel o has the same variations of sound 
in French as found in the English words Rob, 
Robe, Lord. The first of these sounds is given 
* when this vowel is followed by a mute syllable or 
a sounding final consonant. Ex: roc, broc, folle, 
symbole. 

The second, or close sound, at the beginning of 
words, and when o is followed by a sounding syl- 
lable. Ex : os, oter, hopital. 

The . third, or open sound, w T hen o is followed 
by r. Ex : or, corps, alors, fort. 



SECOND EXERCISE. 

READ AND MEMORIZE. 



Ami, 


friend. 


Port, 


port. 


Abri, 


shelter. 


Car, 


for. 


Anis, 


aniseed. 


Fort, 


strong. 


Avis, 


advice. 


Bol, 


bowl. 


Cabri, 


goat. 


Col, 


collar. 


Tot, 


soon. 


Roti, 


roasted 


Trop, 


too much. 


Os, 


bone. 


Or, 


gold. 


Lit, 


bed. 


Nord, 


north. 


Lot, 


lot. 



12 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



Pot, jar. 


Poli, 


polite. 


Nid, nest. 


Uni, 


smooth. 


Sur, on. 


Fat, 


fop. 


Mal,n. evil. 


Nud, 


naked. 


Pur, pure, 


Am as, 


heap. 


Fut, v. was. 


Rassis, 


stale. 


Cru, raw. 


Mai, adv. badly. 


Joli, pretty. 






Ananas, pine-apple. 


11 fila, v. he 


spun. 


Hopital, hospital. 


11 ira, v. he 


shall go. 


Animal, animal. 


11 usa,r. he 


used. 


Fanal, lamp. 


The following verbs are 


Hormis, save. 


all in the 3d sing, of the 


Naval, naval. 


Perfect : 




Capital, capital. 


11 usurpa, ] 


lie usurped. 


Carnaval, carnival. 


imita, 


imitated. 


Calcul, calculation. 


irrita, 


irritated. 


Surplus, surplus. 


pila, 


pounded. 


Plus, more. 


affirma, 


affirmed. 


Fusil, gun. 


annitla, 


annulled. 


Tordu, twisted. 


dora, 


gilded. 




figura, 


figured. 



Questions. — When do the vowels a, i, y and u, 
lose their original sound ? — What is the original 
sound of these vowels ? — How many sounds has 
O ? — When is the first of these sounds given ? — 
The second ?— The third ? 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 13 



Third Lesson. 



THE VOWEL E, AND THE ACCENTS. 

We have seen, in the preceding lesson, the vari- 
ations of sound in a, i 5 o, u. The vowel e is the 
only one whose sound changes entirely according 
to what sign is placed over it, or by what conso- 
nant it is followed ; and these changes are so im- 
portant that the student cannot study them too 
carefully. 

E. The name of this letter and its sound when 
it has the acute accent ( ') placed over it, thus, e, is 
like the a in hate, fate. 

Without this accent, it has the same sound in 
the following cases : 

1st. When it precedes a double consonant fol- 
lowed by a sounding syllable, as in effrayer, dessin, 
essaim. 

2d. When followed by x before a vowel. Ex : 
examiner, exemple. 

3d. When, being followed by r, it ends a verb 
or a word of more than one syllable. Ex : aimer 
(v..) jeter (v.,) dossier, cahier. In these words the r 
is not sounded. Except Amer, Jupiter, Lucifer, 
hiver, hier, and the Latin words pater, mater, frater, 
etc., in which the r is sounded and the e takes the 
grave or open sound. 



14 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

4th. When followed by z, at the end of a word, 
this consonant is mute and the e has the shut 
sound. Ex: allez, chez, nez\ pronounce alle, che, ne. 

With the grave accent ( N ) E has the sound of 
the English e in bet. Ex : abces, succes, fidele. 

Without this accent it still has the same sound : 

1st. In monosyllables ending with s, and all 
words ending with t, (these consonants not sound- 
ed,) les, mes, des, est, sujet, parapet Except the 
conjunction et which is pronounced like English a. 

2d. Before two different consonants: escalier, 
respira, veste. 

3d. Before double consonants, when the follow- 
ing syllable is mute. Ex: guerre, tendresse, lai*- 
gesse, nette. 

4th. Before all sounding final consonants. Ex : 
bee, Jiel, bel, and in monosyllables ending with r ? 
mer,fer, cher. 

5th. In ex followed by a consonant: excelled 
expres. 

The circumflex accent ( A ) gives e a longer 
sound than the grave. The difference is to be 
found in bet and there ; in the word extreme the 
first e has its sound in bet, the second is like the 
first e in there. 

Pronounce e shut, e open, e long 
4 E, without any accent, is mute at the end of 
French words, as it is in English in are, fare, etc. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 15 

But, in French, the addition of an s, to form the 
plural, does not change the sound ; race or races, 
belle or belles, sound as if written rass, bel. The 
3d person plural in verbs, is formed by the addition 
of nt or ent to the 3d singular; these additional 
letters, like the s, are mute and never change the 
sound ; pronounce alike : elle rive and elles revent, 
il aime and Us aiment. Remember well this 
rule. 

This mute e, placed between g and the vowels 
a, o, u, gives this consonant the soft sound of j. 
Ex: gagea. 

When e is the final letter of a monosyllable, or, 
when it is placed between two consonants, it has a 
peculiar guttural sound which has no representative 
in English Ex : le, me, te, ne, que, mener, revenir. 
This e is pronounced in poetry and public reading ; 
but, in familiar conversation, the French often sup- 
press it, as the English do in the word battery, 
where the e only serves to lengthen the sound of 
the preceding vowel, but is not itself sounded. 
The frequent suppression of this sound is what 
makes the utterance of French people appear so 
rapid and sometimes unintelligible to foreigners. 
For instance, "-Je veux vous rnener promener" is 
pronounced "J r ueux vous rrCner promoter ; w reduc- 
ing the number of syllables in the sentence from 
eight to five. It must be borne in mind, however, 



16 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

that the faint e is the only voivel that can be thus 
suppressed. 

When the monosyllables je, te, le, me, ne, que, 
happen before a word commencing with a vowel 
or silent h, the e is elided, that is, suppressed and 
an apostrophe placed instead. Thus, I arrive, 
must be translated f arrive, and not je arrive ; the 
friend, (f.) Vamie, and not la amie. This is to 
avoid the disagreeable effect of two vowel sounds 
coming in contact. The apostrophe is only an 
orthographical sign showing that a vowel has been 
suppressed ; it has no sound, and the words in the 
example should be pronounced as if written jarrive, 
lamie. 

Questions. — When does e have the sound of a 
in fate ? — When does it have the sound of e in 
bet ? — What sound has e with the circumflex ac- 
cent ? — What sound has e, without an accent, at 
the end of words ? — When s is added to form the 
plural, or nt to form the 3d person plural of verbs, 
what change takes place in the sound? — What 
effect has e placed between g and the vowels a, 
o, u ? — What sound has e, when it is the final 
letter of a monosyllable, or when it is placed be- 
tween two consonants ? — When is e suppressed ? 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



17 



THIRD EXERCISE. 



Anime, 
Flatte, 
Saluer, 
Diademe, 
Arriver, 
Arrive, 
II arriva, 
Allumer, to 
Allumera, 
Examiner, 
Imite, 
Potier, 
Felonie, 
Filer, 
Ordure, 
Cafe, 
Utility 
Reposer, 
Multitude, 
Matelas, 
Matelot, 
Habile, 
Georgie, 
Geographie, 
Hospitalite, 
Respirer, 
2 



animated. 

flattered. 

to salute. 

diadem, 

to arrive. 

arrived, p p. 

he arrived. 

light, kindle. 

shall light. 

to examine. 

imitated. 

potter. 

felony. 

to spin. 

dirt. 

coffee. 

usefulness. 

to rest. 

multitude. 

mattress. 

sailor. 

clever. 

Georgia. 

geography. 

hospitality. 

to breathe. 



Succes, 

Apres, 

Pres, 

Creme, 

Assiette, 

Verre, 

Serviette, 

Nappe, 

Table, 

Tablier, 

Fable, 

Essuyer, 

Pecher, 

Peehe, 

Pecher, 

Avarice, 

Avare, 

Sale, 

Salle, 

La halle, 

La gale, 

Ratelier, 

Preter, 

Le sel, 

La selle, 

Supplier, 



success. 

after. 

near. 

cream. 

plate. 

glass. 

napkin. 

table cloth. 

table. 

apron. 

fable. 

to wipe. 

to sin. 

sin. 

to fish. 

avarice. 

miser. 

dirty. 

hall. 

market. 

the itch. 

manger. 

to lend. 

the salt. 

the saddle. 

to beseech. 



18 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



Meme, 
Extreme, 


even, 
extreme. 


Le papier, 

Ma farine, 


the paper, 
my flour. 


Supreme, 
Fete, 


supreme, 
festival. 


11 va, 
Elle va, 


he goes, 
she goes. 


Esperer, 

Espere, 

Attitude, 


to hope, 
hope (imp. 
attitude. 


Venir, 
) Devenir, 
Revenir, 


to come, 
to become, 
to come back. 


Serrure, 


lock. 


Revenu,p.£) 


. come back. 


Serrurier, 


locksmith. 


Renegat, 


renegade. 


Rabot, 


plane. 


L'homme, 


the man. 


Jabot, 


frill. 


La femme, 


the woman. 


La scie, 


the saw. 


L^ane (m.) 


the ass. 


La plume, 


the pen. 


L'os (m.) 


the bone. 




Fourth Lesson. 






COMPOUND VOWEL 


s . 



In French, two or three vowels are sometimes 
combined to form certain simple sounds. They 
are called "compound vowels" (voyelles composees.) 
We give their corresponding English sound : 

Ea, ai, ei, eo, au, eai«, ee, on, oi, 

a in father, ay. e in bet. o. o. o. ay. oo. wa in water. 

and eu, ceie, which have no representative in Eng- 
lish. 

The dioeresis ("), in French, trema, placed over 
one of the vowels, restores to each its original 
sound. Thus, mats becomes ma-is ; sail/, sa-ul ; 
aieiiX) a-'ieux. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 19 

nasal sounds — (voyelles nasales.) 

These are simple sounds formed by the combi- 
nation of one or two vowels with the consonants 
m and n. 

Remember that these final consonants only serve 
to give a new sound to the vowel, but are never 
articulated. Here we have one of the principal 
difficulties of French pronunciation, for, in Eng- 
lish, besides the new vowel sound, the final conso- 
nant is pronounced with a sort of vibration pro- 
duced by touching the roof of the mouth with the 
tongue, as in the words am, an, on. This must be 
avoided by all means in pronouncing French nasal 
sounds. If we try to pronounce these words with- 
out raising the toiigue, we shall have the true 
French sound. 

Am, an, ean, aen, aon, em,, en, have nearly the 
sound of an in ivang. But when en comes after i^ 
at the end of a word, it has nearly the sound of en 
in ending ; bien, lien. 

Im, in, aim, ain, ein, have also nearly the sound 
en in ending. 

Om, on, eon, like English on, suppressing the 
vibration of the n. 

Um, un, eun, the nearest approach to this sound 
is found in the word sung. 

U, eu and oeu, nn and tun, being sounds entirely 



20 FIRST STEPS IX TREXCH. 



foreign to the English language, have to be learned 
from'the teacher." These" sounds can be obtained 
bv observing the following mechanical process : 

' To pronounce u. the Tips are puckered, giving 
but a narrow outlet for the sound to escape ; if. 
then, we drop slightly the lower jaw. we get the 
sound un : bv dropping it a little more and forcing 
the sound from the throat, we obtain eu. 

When a nasal syllable is followed by a vowel, 
the nasal sound is" destroyed, and the first vowel 

simple or compound) resumes its original sound, 
two syllables being formed instead of one. Ex : 
un, u-ne: jeun. jeu-ne : plant, pla-ne ; brun. bni-ne : 

grain, grai-ne. 

Masculine nouns and adjectives ending in len 
and on, form the feminine by doubling the conso- 
nant and adding a mute e. In this case, the vow- 
el's original sound is pronounced open. Bon. bo- 
nne : lion, lio-nne : chien. chie-nne. 



diphthongs — (diphthongues.) 

The diphthong is the combination of a simple 
vowel with a nasal or compound one. forming two 
distinct, but closely connected sounds, in one 
emission of the voice : 
Iai. iau. ieu. iou. oue. oui. ien. ran, ion. oin. uu uin. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 21 

Remarks. — The letter y, between two other 
vowels, has the sound of two distinct i s, the first 
combining with the preceding vowel, and the sec- 
ond sounded in the next syllable. Thus, pays is 
pronounced pai-is ; moyen, moi-ien; croyant, croi- 
iant. 

The combinations ail, aille, have a liquid sound, 
not unlike that of Til in English. Eil, exile, have 
likewise a liquid sound, which could be produced 
in English by the combination eVll, giving ei the 
sound these vowels have in their, and adding the 
final sound of I'll. 

Ti, in English, has the sound of sh, before en 
and on, as in position, patience; in French nouns 
and adjectives, this syllable is pronounced ci ; 
thus, position, patience, patient, are to be pro- 
nounced posicion, patience, patient. It must be 
remarked that in the last two words en is followed 
by a consonant ; when that syllable ends a word 
and has the sound of en in end, the t preserves its 
original sound ; thus in chretien, maintien, ti has 
the same sound as in the English word "Chris- 
tian." 

But, in the verbs, t preserves its natural sound 
before ien and ion, though a consonant may fol- 
low ; and we pronounce as written, je maintiens, 
nous repetions, il soutient. 



22 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Questions. — What is a "compound vowel ?" — 
Wh^t effect has the dioeresis placed on one of the 
letters of a compound vowel ? — What is a "nasal 
vowel," or sound ? — What must w r e observe when 
pronouncing a nasal vowel, to give it the true 
French sound ? — How can we obtain the French 
sound of it, ew, un ? — What is the effect of a 
vowel placed after a nasal sound ? — When mascu- 
line words end in ien and ion, how is the feminine 
formed, and what is the pronunciation ? — What is 
a diphthong ? — How is y pronounced between two 
other vowels ? — What about ail and eil ? — What 
about ti preceding en or on ? — How in the verbs ? 



FOURTH EXERCISE 

Je suis bien heureux, 

I am very happy. 

Tu es un bon enfant, 
Thou art a good child. 

II est malheureux, 
He is unhappy. 

Elle est bonne, 
She is good. 

Nous sommes arrives, 
We are arrived. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 23 

Vous etes studieux, 
You are studious. 

lis sont polis, 
They are polite. 

Elles sont jolies, 
They are pretty. 

Bonjour, monsieur, 

Good morning (or day,) sir, 

Bonsoir, messieurs, 

Good evening, sirs (or gentlemen.) 

Asseyez-vous, mon ami, 
Sit down, my friend. 

Prenez un livre, 
Take a book. 

Donnez moi une plume, 
Give me a pen. 

Pretez-moi votre crayon, 
Lend me your pencil. 

tPai du pain frais, 

I have some bread (2) fresh. (1) 

Battez le tambour, 
Beat the drum. 

Sonnez la trompette, 
Sound the trumpet. 



24 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Voulez-vous du vin nouveau? 

Do you want some new (2) wine? (1) 

Mon verre est plein, 
My glass is full. 

Donnez-moi de Peau, 
Give me some water. 

J'irai moi-meme, 
I shall go myself. 

Paime le beurre, 
I love (like) butter. 

Le temps est beau, 
The weather is fine. 

Passez moi le sucre, 
Pass me the sugar. 

Mon cafe est sucre, 
My coffee is sweetened. 

Avez-vous de la creme ? 
Have you some cream ? 

Elle a de Pamitie pour moi, 
She has some friendship for me. 

Get homme est bienveillant, 
That man is benevolent. 

Sa position est cruelle, 
His position is cruel. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 25 

Elle est remplie de passion. 
She is full of passion. 

Soyez patient et attentif, 
Be patient and attentive. 

Mademoiselle Clara est bien. 
Miss Clara is well. 

Elle a de beaux yeux, 
She has beautiful eyes. 

(Test une bonne resolution, 
It is a good resolution. 

Nous prendrons un fiacre, 
We shall take a hack. 

Donnez-lui de la paille, 
Give him some straw. 

Ton bceuf a mange mon foin, 
Thy ox has eaten my hay. 

Ayez bien soin de lui, 
Have good care of him. 

Une grande satisfaction, 
A great satisfaction. 

Voila Poiseau bleu, 

There is the bird (2) blue. (1) 

Pai un manteau noir, 

I have a cloak (2) black. (1) 



26 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

II a des pigeons blancs, 

He has some pigeons (2) white. (1) 

Avez vous de la moutarde ? 
Have you some (any) mustard ? 

Allons dejeuner, messieurs, 

Let us go to breakfast, gentlemen. 

Nous n'avons pas encore dine, 
We have not yet dined. 

Je maintiens ce fait, 

I maintain this fact. 

Ce mouton est trop gras, 

This mutton (or sheep) is too fat. 

II y a trop de graisse, 
There is too much fat. 

Prenez vos vetements, 
Take your clothes. 

Boutonnez votre habit, 
Button your coat. 

La boutonniere est trop etroite, 
The button-hole is too narrow. 

Ses bottes sont luisantes, 
His boots are glittering. 

Le roi et la reine de France, 
The King and Queen of France. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 27 

Nous croyons en un Dieu supreme, 
We believe in a God supreme. 

Nettoyez votre ardoise, 
Cleanse your slate. 

Jean est imprudent, 
John is imprudent. 



THE CONSONANTS. 

Note — The English pronunciation will be given 
to all consonants for which no rules are laid here. 

Final consonants are articulated before a word 
beginning with a vowel or h mute. But harmony 
of sound makes many exceptions to this rule, and 
where a discordant sound would be produced by 
the articulation of the final consonant, it is better 
to suppress it. Abbe d^Olivet remarks on this 
subject, that "the French prefer an irregularity to 
a discordance." 

Some final consonants are articulated when a 
word stands alone or before the consonant of an- 
other word. These, therefore, form an exception 
to the rule, and must be remembered. 

B in proper names and in radoub (the refitting 
of a ship) is articulated even before a consonant. 

C has the English sound before all the vowels ; 



28 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

that is, the sound of k before a, o, t£, and the 
sound of hard s before e, i, ?/. But it assumes this 
s sound before a, o, te, when a cedilla is placed 
under it. Thus, we pronounce fa gade,facon, repu, 
as if written fa-sad, fa-son, rc-sn. 

In the words second and secretaire, c has the 
sound of g. The final c is silent in the words 
accroc, arsenic, broc, cotignac, marc (weight or 
grounds,) estomac, lacs (love knots ;) in the last 
syllable of succinct and poix-epic ; and after nasal 
sounds, as banc, convainc, etc. But it is articu- 
lated in done at the beginning of a sentence and 
in compound words, as franc-encens. 

Ch has the sound of English sh, except in the 
following words, where it is pronounced like k : — 
Catechumene, chersonese, anachronisme, and others 
which will be given in the exercise. 

D final sounds like t before a vowel or h mute. 
It is silent in sourd, nid, in the terminations ond, 
rond, and after an r, as in fuyard, accord, etc. But 
it must be articulated after the third person of 
verbs followed by il or a ; repond-il ? 11 entend a 
demi. 

F is mute in clef, cerf and in the plurals nerfs, 
oevfs, bceiifs. 

G, when articulated at the end of the words 
sang, rang, before an adjective or the conjunction 
et, it has the sound of k. It is, otherwise, gener- 
ally mute at the end of words even before a vowel. 



FIKST STEPS IN FRENCH. 29 



In the word gangrene, the first g sounds like c. 
Before a, o, u, it has the hard English sound, but 
before e, i, y, the g takes the soft sound of z in 
the word azure. 

J has also this soft z sound before all the vowels. 

Gn has a peculiar sound not found in English, 
except in the word mignonette, which is taken from 
the French. In stagnant, diagnostic, and a few 
other words, the g and n are articulated separ- 
ately, thus, stag-nant. 

Gu has its sound represented in league, that is, 
the u is not sounded; but in the words aigu, 
aigiie, aiguille, aiguillon, sanguinaire, and Guise 
(proper name,) the u is articulated. 

H is either mute or aspirated at the beginning 
of a word. Mute, it has no sound whatever; 
homme, honneur, are pronounced omme, onneur. 
When aspirated it has not the harsh sound of 
English h ; it is simply the hiatus occasioned by 
the° meeting of two vowels, as in English, go in, 
go on. If the preceding word ends with a vowel, 
this cannot be elided ; if a consonant, it cannot be 
connected with the aspirated h. Thus we say le 
hews, la Jwnte, un habkur, instead of Vheros, 
Vhonte, u-nhableur, which would be the case if the 
h was mute. 

L is articulated at the end of words, except 
baril, chenil, fusil, gentil, gril, outil, nombril, persil, 
soul, sourcil, fouls, fils (son,) wherein it is mute 



30 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

even before a vowel. The double I has sometimes 
a liquid sound ; this occurs when it is preceded by 
i, asjille, vrille,faucille. However, in ville, village^ 
villageois, villanelle, villetle, it sounds like 11 in the 
English word village. 

M, followed by n, is not articulated in damner y 
condamner, automne, but it is pronounced in indem- 
niser. The final m is never articulated when it 
forms a nasal sound; but, in proper names and the 
words ftm, item, idem, it is always articulated. 

N, final, is always articulated in examen and 
hymen. 

P does not sound when followed by t, except in 
baptismal. In coup, beaucoup, trop, it is articulated 
before a vowel. It is mute in cep. 

Q. This consonant is articulated in coq, and in 
cinq before a vowel or h mute, or when cinq ends 
a sentence. In Coq-d^Inde the q is mute. 

Qu sounds like k ; that is, the u is mute, except 
in the following words : 

In aquatique, equateur, equation, in-quarto, quad- 
ragenaire, quadra gesime, quadrature, quadruple r 
quadrupede, quaker, its sound is like coo, — acooa- 
iique. 

In a quia, equestre, equitation, liquefier, questeur, 
quintuple, quirinal, Qiiiniilien, Quinte-curce, the <£ 
takes the k sound, and the u is articulated a cu-ia 
ecu-estre. 

R. This consonant is articulated very full at 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 31 

the beginning or in the middle of a word. When 
final after the vowels a, i, o, u, it is always articu- 
lated. But in the infinitive of verbs of the first 
conjugation, the r is sounded only before a vowel 
of h mute. Thus we pronounce aimer Velude and 
aimer a chanter, as if written aime Velude, aimera 
chante. 

In other words than verbs, of one or two sylla- 
bles, and ending in er, the final r is articulated and 
the e sounded open : fer, cher, amer. The same 
pronunciation is given in the words Jupiter, Luci- 
fer, and, we may add, foreign proper names, as 
Latimer, Mortimer. 

S, final, does not sound before a consonant, 
except in some words which will be given in the 
exercise. 

Between two vowels, a single s has the soft 
sound of z, except in a few compound words 
where the simple word commenced with s, as pre- 
supposer. 

Between two consonants or a vowel and a con- 
sonant, or when double, s has the hard sound 
which is given in English at the beginning of a 
word : absolu, satisfaction, poisson. 

The words in which the final t is articulated will 
be given in the exercise. 

X sounds like gz at the beginning of a word 
or when preceded by a vowel, except Jhxxerre, 
Auxoune, Bruxelles, where it is pronounced like ss. 



32 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

When final, before a vowel, x is pronounced like 
z; thus, beaux yeux must be pronounced bo-zieux. 
Z is articulated at the end of proper names 
only, as Suez* Rhodez. 

Questions. — When is b articulated? — What 
sound has c before the vowels ? — What sound has 
c in the words second and secretaire ? — When is 
the final c silent ? — What is the sound of ch ? — 
What is the final sound of d before a vowel or h 
mute ? — When is it silent ? — When articulated ? — 
When is final / mute ? — When has final g the 
sound of fe ? — What sound has c before a, o, u ? — 
Before e, i, y ? — What sound has j ? — What is 
the sound of gn ? — How do you pronounce gu ? — 
Explain the difference between h mute and h aspi- 
rated. — In what words is final I mute ? — What is 
the sound of 11 ? — When is m articulated ? — When 
is it not articulated ? — In what words do you artic- 
ulate the final n ? — When is p not to be sounded ? 
When is it articulated before a vowel ? — When 
mute ? — When is q articulated? — What about qu? 
When is r articulated and when silent? — Is final s 
generally articulated ? — What is the sound of s 
between two vowels ? — What is its sound at the 
beginning of a word, between two consonants, or 
between a consonant and a vowel ? — Is final t 
generally articulated ? — What is the sound of x ? 
When is final z articulated ? 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



33 



FIFTH EXERCISE. 

Avez vous fini le radoub de ce vaisseau ? 
Have you finished the refitting of that ship ? 

II a reQU son conge definitif, 

He has received his final (2) discharge. (1) 

Donnez nous deux brocs de vin. 
Give us two jugs of wine. 

Mettez votre chapeau, 
Put on your hat. 

Je n'ai plus de plomb, 
I have no more lead. 

C'est sa fa^on d'agir, 
It is his way of acting. 

Ce banc est trop dur, 
This bench is too hard. 

La chaleur me fatigue, 
The heat fatigues me. 

Pronounce ch like k in the following : 

catechumene, chersonese, 

catechumen, chersonese, 

archange, chaos, 

archangel, chaos, 



Chiromancie, 
Palmistry, 

Archonte, 
Archon 



*5 

3 



34 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Chronologie, Melchior, orchestre, 

Chronology, Melchior, orchestra, 

Patriarchal;, Michel Ange. 

Patriarchship, Michael Angelo. 

Washington fut un grand homme, 
Washington was a great man. 

Essayez ma clef de montre, 
Try my watch-key. 

Pai pris le nid avec Poiseau, 

I have taken the nest with the bird. 

Qui vole un oeuf peut voler un boeuf, 
Who steals an egg can steal an ox. 

Voulez vous une aiguille ? 
Do you want a needle ? 

La ligne droite est la plus courte, 
The straight (2) line (1) is the shortest. 

La vigne du Seigneur, 
The vineyard of the Lord. 

Un heros vertueux, 
A virtuous (2) hero. (1) 

Le chef est sourd a notre appel, 
The chief is deaf to our appeal. 

Ce boeuf a la gangrene, 

This ox has gangrene (is mortified.) 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 35 

Achetez une douzaine cfoeufs, 
Buy a dozen of eggs. 

Le due de Guise est le chef de la ligue, 
The duke of Guise is the chief of the league. 

Cette eau stagnante est infecte, 
That stagnant water is infectious. 

Mon chien est tres vaillant, 
My dog is very valiant (brave.) 

Ce hableur continue sa harangue, 
That lying babbler continues his speech. 

Padmire la housse de votre chevaJ, 
I admire the housing of your horse. 

Ma fille est allee a la ville. 

My daughter is gone to the city. 

Pirai demain au college, 

I will go to-morrow to the college. 

II est condamne a mort, 
He is condemned to death. 

Paime beaucoup a etudier, 
I like much to study. 

Repetez cinq ou six fois 5 
Repeat five or si* times. 

Le chameau est un quadrupede. 
The camel is a quadruped. 



36 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Une statue equestre, 

An equestrian (2) statue. (1) 

Adorer Dieu, aimer le prochain, 

T© worship God, to love our neighbor. 

Quel air pur et embaume ! 
What pure and balmy air ! 

Aimez vous le poisson? 
Do you like fish? 

Craignez le poison, 
Fear poison. 

La moisson est superbe, 
The crop is superb. 

II s'est demis la hanche, 
He has sprained his hip. 

Le hibou est hideux, 
The owl is hideous. 

Mon fils est au village, 
My son is in the village. 

Les fils sont rompus, 
The threads are broken. 

Je vous indemniserai, 

I will indemnify (2) you. (1) 

Vous etes exempts de la peine, 
You are exempted from ike penalty. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 37 

JPai un coq et un coq-dTnde, 
I have a cock and a turkey-cock. 

Un animal aquatique, 
An aquatic animal. 

Avez-vous lu Quintilien ? 
Have you read Quintilian? 

Croyez vous avoir fini bientot? 

Do you think you will have finished soon? 

Je vais bientot finir, 

I am going soon to finish. 

Je suis bien resolu, 
I am well resolved. 

Mon pere est absent, 
My father is absent. 

Ma mere etait presente, 
My mother was present. 



OBSERVATIONS ON PRONUNCIATION. 

We have seen that some of the final consonants 
are articulated before another consonant; these 
are always articulated. The final consonants 
which are articulated only before vowels, like a 
connecting link between two words, are pronounced 
in reciting poetry, in public speaking or reading ; 



38 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

to give this pronunciation correctly, we must take 
care not to pause after the consonant, but to pro- 
nounce it as if * it belonged to the next word. 
Thus, facheux evenement, charmant enfant, should 
be pronounced facheu zevenement, charman tenfant. 
But, in familiar conversation and ordinary reading, 
it is not customary to sound these final consonants, 
except in the articles les, des, aux ; the possessive 
adjectives mes, tes, ses, nos, vos, leurs ; the demon- 
strative adjective ces, the preposition des, and, we 
may safely add, all words of one syllable. 

Particular attention should be given to the punc- 
tuation, so as to make the necessary pauses, and 
avoid jumbling the words together. One cannot 
read more than eight syllables without pausing to 
take breath, and this pause may be made after a 
lesser number, provided we take care to pause 
only between two words independent from one 
another. 

Every sounding syllable must be pronounced 
distinctly and fully. The pupil should open the 
mouth more than when speaking English ; avoid 
touching the roof of the mouth with the tongue, 
and learn to pronounce slowly. When the correct 
articulation is once acquired, there will be no diffi- 
culty in training the tongue to a clear and rapid 
enunciation. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 39 

Lesson.— Gender, 

The most frequent blunders of Anglo-Saxons, 
when they attempt to speak French, consist in the 
misuse of the gender. The reason of this is ob- 
vious : in French we have no neuter gender, and, 
consequently, all nouns must be either masculine 
or feminine. This appears at first sight the source 
of much confusion and difficulty, particularly when 
we are told that, in French, the article and the 
adjective accompanying a noun must agree with it 
in gender. But certain rules enable us to ascer- 
tain the gender of the noun itself, and the sooner 
we become familiar with these rules, the easier 
will our task become. And the article and adjec- 
tive, far from complicating the difficulty, will help 
us to find the gender of the noun with which they 
agree. This will be fully demonstrated in the les- 
sons treating of the article and the adjective. 

The French have ten parts of speech, viz : The 
noun, the article, the adjective, the pronoun, the 
verb, the paiiiciple, the advei^b, the preposition, the 
conjunction, and the interjection. The last four 
are invariable. 

Questions. — How many genders in French? — 
How many parts of speech ? 



40 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Of Houns and their Gender. 

1st. General rale : all nouns that are masculine 
or feminine in English, preserve their gender in 
French. It is, therefore, only the neuter nouns — 
that is, the name of inanimate things — which must 
be made either masculine or feminine when ren- 
dered in French. It is evident that if we translate 
"father," pere ; "mother," mere; and "chair," 
chaise, we know that fere must be a masculine 
noun, mere feminine, and we are only embarrassed 
to find the gender of chaise, because it was neuter 
in English. 

This rule applies to all names of animals, vary- 
ing according to their sex, as cock, hen ; horse, 
mare ; lion, lioness, etc. 

The names of most birds and fishes not indi- 
cating the sex are either masculine or feminine, 
but more frequently the former. 

2d. In French, the termination of the noun fre- 
quently helps us to find its gender. We know a 
noun to be feminine when it ends in one of the 
following syllables : 

Aie, ie, ue, oie, one, ee, tie, te, elle, Me, iere, 
ance, anse, ence, ense, sion, tion, xion, atte, ette, 
outte, utte. 

Except — 
1st. Paix, brebis, perdrix, fourmi, la merely 
peace, ewe. partridge. ant. mercy. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 41 

nuit, soaris, bru, glu, vertu, tribu, croix, voix, 

night, mouse, daughter- glue, virtue, tribe, cross. voice, 
in-law. 

noix, poix, hi, foi, and fois, which are feminine ; 
nut. pitch, law. faith. time. 

2d. and amphibie, genie, impie, incendie, 

amphibious, genius, impious, conflagration, 

parapluie, apogee, caducee, coryphee, lycee, 
umbrella, apogeon. caduceus. coryphoeus, lyceum. 

mausolee, musee, perigee, pygmee, trophee, 
mausoleum, museum, perigeum. pigmy. trophy, 
which are masculine. 

3d. Lierre, ivy ; and cimetiere, church-yard, are 
also masculine. 

It will be seen from the above that the final 
mute e, after another vowel, and the nasal sound 
on, preceded by si, ti, and xi, generally indicate a 
feminine noun. Final consonants and the other 
vowels generally indicate the masculine gender ; 
and e, after a consonant, ends words of both gen- 
ders. There are, however, many exceptions to 
this rule, which can only be learned by practice 
and much reading. We shall precede all such 
nouns used in the exercise by le for the masculiue 
and la for the feminine. 



42 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Questions. — How can we tell the gender, in 
French, of nouns that are either masculine or 
feminine in English ? — How about names of ani- 
mals ? — How about neuter nouns ? — What is the 
termination of feminine nouns ? — What are the 
exceptions ? — What final letters generally indicate 
a noun to be feminine, and which masculine ? 



EXERCISE. 

Give the gender of the following nouns : 

craie, vie, vue, joie, boue, fee, amitie, pitie, 
chalk, life, sight, joy. mud. fairy, friendship, pity. 

querelle, ville, lumiere, esperance, danse, enfance, 
quarrel, town, light. hope. dance, infancy. 

infamie, prudence, passion, petition, reflexion, 
infamy, prudence, passion, petition, reflection. 

chat, chatte, fourchette, gout, goutte, lutte, bal ; 
cat. she cat. fork. taste, drop, struggle, ball. 

stupidite, folie, fou, la table, la chaise, le tableau 

stupidity. folly, madman, the table, the chair, the picture. 

le cocher, le cuisinier, la cuisiniere, la cuisine, 

the coachman, the (man) cook, the (woman) cook, the kitchen. 

Peau, feu, chandelle, plat, assiette, bouteille, 
the water, fire, candle, dish, plate. bottle. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 43 

la cuiller, vin, pain, le verre, fille, joue, 
the spoon, wine, bread, the glass, girl, cheek, 
nez, oreille, la bouche, la levre, Poeil, 
nose. ear. the mouth. the lip. the eye. 

front, cheveu, la main, bras, pied, la plume, 
forehead, hair, the hand. arm. foot. the pen. 
papier, le livre, le lievre, lapin, hutte, Soulier, 
paper, the book, the hare, rabbit, hut. shoe. 

bas, jarretiere, la botte, la hotte, chapeau, 
stocking, garter. the boot, the hod. hat. 
gant, doigt, la dent, ambition, la balle, 
glove, finger, the tooth, ambition. the ball, 
la maison, la toison, le poison, le poisson, huitre, 
the house, the fleece, poison. fish. oyster, 
taureau, vache, coq, poule, poulet, oeuf(m.) 

bull. cow. cock. hen. chicken, egg. 

lait, chien, requin, Parbre (m.) feuille, gaiete, 
milk. dog. shark, the tree. leaf. gaiety, 

plaisir, tombeau, charrette, lionne, jument, bouc, 
pleasure, tomb. cart. lioness, mare, he-goat, 
lance, garpon, frere, soeur, habit, oncle, tante, 
lance, boy. brother, sister, coat, uncle, aunt, 
tente, oiseau, hirondelle, la brise, vent, 
tent. bird. swallow, the breeze. wind, 

la lune, le soleil, 

the moon. the sun. 



44 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Formation of the Plural. 

3d. General rule. — The plural of nouns is formed 
by adding an s to the singular. 
Except — 

1st. Nouns ending in the singular with s, x, z, 
which preserve their termination in the plural : 
Ex : hois, poix, nez. 

2d. Nouns ending in au and en, take an x in 
the plural : tableau, picture ; tableaux, pictures ; 
feu, fire ; feux, fires. 

3d. Nouns ending in ou take an s in the plural, 
except bijou, jewel ; caillou, pebble ; chou, cab- 
bage ; genou, knee ; joujou, toy ; hibou, owl ; and 
pou, louse ; which take an x. 

4th. Nouns in al change their termination in 
aux, except the following, to which we simply add 
an s, viz: aval, endorsement; bal, ball; cal, cal- 
losity ; carnaval, carnival ; nopal, nopal-tree ; pal, 
pale; regal, treat; chacal, jackal; serval, tiger-cat 
Thus we say le cheval, les chevaux ; le bal, les bals. 

5th. The following nouns in ail change that 
termination in aux, viz: bail, lease; email, enamel; 
corail, coral ; soupirail (the air-hole in a cellar ;) 
vantail (the leaf of a door or shutter;) and travail, 
work. Ail, garlic, forms aulx in the plural. 

All other nouns with the termination ail, form 
the plural by the addition of an s. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 45 

6th. The nouns ciel^ oeil, aieul, have two different 
plurals, according to the sense in which they are 
used. 

Ciel, meaning the "sky," and del de lit (bed- 
tester,) form the plural by the addition of an s. 

Ciel, meaning "heaven," becomes deux in the 
plural. 

CEil, meaning "eye," the organ of sight, makes 
yeux in the plural. In other cases, such as ceil de 
boeuf (bulVs eye,) and to designate the cavities or 
"eyes" in cheese or bread, the plural is oeils. 

Aieul (grandfather) forms aieuls, when we speak 
of one's maternal and paternal grandfathers ; but, 
when used in the general sense of "forefathers," it 
becomes aieux. 

Questions. — How is the plural of nouns gener- 
ally formed ? — How in nouns ending in s, x, z ? — 
How with those ending in au or eu ? — Those in 
ou ? — Those in al ? — Those in ail ? — What words 
have two plurals ? — What about ciel ? oeil ? aieul ? 



EXERCISE. 

Form the plural of the French nouns given here 
in the singular : 

The castles of the Kings. 
Les chateau des roi. 



46 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

The laws of those countries, 
Les loi de ces pays. 

I have bought the pictures, 
JPai achete les tableau. 

Do you like jewels ? 
Aimez-vous les bijou ? 

Diamonds are but pebbles, 

Les diamant ne sont que des caillou. 

The jackals ate the horses, 

Les chacal mangerent les cheval. 

We have fine balls here, 
Nous avons de beaux bal ici. 

Here are some toys, 
Voici des joujou. 

Lend me your books, 
Pretez moi vos livre. 

What pretty enamels! 
Quels jolis email! 

I prefer the corals, 
Je pref^re les corail. 

Oh ! the ugly noses ! 
Oh ! les vilains nez ! 

Let us visit these woods, 
Visitons ces bois. 






FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 47 

Do you hear the tiger-cats? 
Entendez-vous les serval ? 

Close the window-shutters, 
Fermez les vantail de la fenetre 

The cries of the owls, 
Les cri des hibou. 

These folks are mad. 
Ces gens sont fou. 

Drive those nails, 
Enfoncez ces clou. 

How beautiful the heavens! 
Que les ciel sont beaux ! 

He paints the finest skies, 
II peint les plus beaux ciel. 

My two grandfathers are dead, 
Mes deux a'ieul sont morts. 

He lost his two eyes, 
II perdit les deux aeil. 

Our forefathers were free, 
Nos aieul etaient libres. 

That cheese is full of eyes, 
Ce fromage est plein d'oeil. 

Fill the glasses, 
Remplissez les verre. 



48 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Have you any fans? 
Avez-vous des eventail? 

The works of the Romans, 
Les travail des Romains. 

The journals of to-day, 
Les journal d'aujourd'hui. 

I have some good pencils, 
JPai de bons crayon. 

Do you want some cabbages ? 
Voulez-vous des chou? 

Those children are tired, 
Ces enfant sont fatigues. 

I had some cakes, 
JPavais des gateau. 



The Article. 

In French there is but one article, used before 
nouns in a definite sense. It is le before nouns 
and adjectives of the masculine gender and singu- 
lar number ; la before the feminine singular, and 
les before the plural nouns and adjectives of both 
genders. In place of the English indefinite article 
a or an, the French use the numeral adjective 
(one) an for the masculine, une for the feminine. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 49 

The article is so closely connected with the 
noun, and we have introduced it so often in the 
preceding exercises, that the student must have 
already become familiar with the important rule 
that — 

The article always agrees in gender and number 
with the noun it precedes. 

If, then, we translate from the English text, to 
render "the" in French, we must be guided by the 
gender and number of the noun it precedes. 

On the other hand, if we are using the French 
text, the article itself will denote the gender and 
number of the singular nouns. Thus, if a French- 
man would be puzzled by the invariable the before 
"table" or "bench," the Anglo-Saxon who reads 
la table, le banc, cannot fail to se^ that table is 
feminine and banc masculine. 

When la or le occurs before a vowel or a mute 
/t, the a or e is elided ; that is, suppressed, and 
replaced by an apostrophe. This is required by 
the regard the French have for euphony : that is, 
the softness of pronunciation or the harmony of 
sound ; the same reason why the English change a 
into an. 

The article Ze, les, united to the prepositions 

a (to,) or de (of,) becomes a contracted article — a 

new word, in fact. We translate "to the boy," 

"to the boys," by an gargon, aux garcons ; "of 

4 



50 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

the master," "of the masters," by du maitre, des 
maltres, instead of a le garpon, de le rncMre, etc. 

But we must render "to the man," "of the 
friend," by a Vhomme, de Pami ; and "to the men," 
"of the friends," by aux homines, des amis, be- 
cause, in the first example, the e of the article le 
being elided before a vowel or h mute, the con- 
traction cannot take place ; we cannot say du ami, 
au homme, because we could not have said le ami, 
le homme. In the second example, the article 
being in the plural, there is no elision, and conse- 
quently the contraction is possible. We say des 
hommes, aux amis, because we could have said les 
hommes, les amis. For the same reason the con- 
traction takes place before a consonant or an 
aspirated h, since no elision is required before 
those letters, and we say du heros, au hameau. 

The feminine singular la is never contracted ; 
we say de la femme, a Vame, (of the woman, to 
the soul.) But the plural les serving for both 
genders, is always contracted — des femmes, aux 
ames. 

Questions. — How many Articles are there in 
French ? — What is used in place of a or an ? — 
What is the important rule concerning the Article? 
What is done when le or la occurs before a vowel 
or mute h ? — Why? — What is done when le, les, 
happen after the prepositions a, de ? — And when 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 51 

this happens before a vowel or mute h ? — When 
is this contraction required? — Can the feminine 
article la be contracted ? 



EXERCISE. 

The student will render the English Article in 
French, and fill the blanks : 

I told (to the) man to come with the woman, 
Pai dit homme venir avec femme. 

The lion is the king of (the) animals, 
est roi 

I say farewell to the friends of (the) Liberty, 
Je dis adieu Liberte. 

The English are a free and brave people, 

Anglais sont unpeuple(3) libre(l) et brave. (2) 

I shall go to the house, to the school, to the theatre 
J'irai maison (f.) ecole (f.) theatre (m.) 

Give me ( «) paper, ( f s ^ e e ) pens, ( ? f s l e e ) books r 
Donnez-moi papier, plume, 

Do you know the lesson to-day ? 
Savez vous lepon (f.) aujourdhui ? 

Yes, sir, better than I knew the others, 
Oui, monsieur, mieux que je n'ai su autres. 



52 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

The last of the Mohicans, 
dernier (m. ) Mohicans. 

The first woman, the first man, the last day, 
premiere premier jour. 

The joy of (the) children displeases (to) the old, 
joie enfants deplait vieux. 

The stars are the lamps of the heavens, 
etoiles sont lampes 

Study the fifth lesson and the last exercises, 
Etudiez cinquieme et themes, (m.) 

Say to the boys that the apples are ripe, 
Dites garpons que pommes sont mures. 

I gave to the pupils the pens which the master gave 
•Pai donne eleves que a donne 

The young girls gave the flowers to the sick, 
jeunes filles donnerent fleurs (f.) malades 

(m. pi.) 

The head, the body, the arms, the knees, the feet, 
tete,(f.) corps, bras, genou, pied. 

The milk is spoilt, give it to the cat, 
lait gate, donnez le chat. 

The kittens of the old cat are dead, 
petits chats vieille chatte sont morts. 



FIRST STEPS m FRENCH. 53 



The Adjective. 

The Adjective serves to express the qualities of 
a thing, or the conditions of being under which 
we consider it. 

The French have two classes of adjectives, viz: 
LPAdjectif qualifwatif, which expresses the quality 
belonging to the noun, as bon« good ; joli, pretty ; 
brave , brave. 

XSAdjectif determinatif, which determines or de- 
fines the condition of being of the thing spoken 
of. There are four sub-divisions of this adjective. 

1st. The numeral adjectives, divided into cardi- - 
nals and ordinals, as in English. Un (one) among 
the cardinals, and premier* second (first, second) 
among the ordinals, take a mute e before feminine 
nouns : line, premiere, seconde. The other numer- 
als remain the same for both genders. 

2d. The demonstrative adjectives ce, eel (this, 

that,) for the masculine singular ; cette for the 

feminine singular ; and ces (these, those,) for the 

plural of both genders. Ce chien, cet homme, cette 

femme, ces homines, ces femmes. 

3d. The possessive adjectives, which convey 
the idea of possession. They correspond with 
the English "possessive adjective pronouns," viz : 



54 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



Fern. s. PI. both genders. 



Masc. s. 

My, mon, ma, mes. 

Thy, ton, ta, tes. 

His, her, its, son, sa, ses. 

Our, notre, notre, nos. 

Your, votre, votre, vos. 

Their, leur, leur, leurs. 

Note. — Mon, ton, son, are used instead of una, 
ta, sa, before a feminine noun beginning with a 
vowel or h mute. We say mon ante, mon heure, 
for the same reason that we elide the vowel in the 
article le, la ; that is, for the sake of euphony. 

4th. The indefinite adjectives : 
Chaque, chacun — each, each one ; tout — all ; nul 
and aucun — no or none ; mime — same, even ; 
quelque — some ; plusieurs — several ; tel — such ; 
quel — which or what ; quelconque — whatsoever. 

A careful study of the possessive adjective, like 
that of the article, will enable us to avoid frequent 
mistakes. In English the words my, thy, his, her, 
its, our, your, their, are pronouns, and must be of 
the same number and gender as the noun for 
which they stand ; but, in French, the words cor- 
responding to these are adjectives, and must agree 
ivith the noun which they qualify or determine. 
Thus, in English, we will use the pronoun my 
before father, mother, brothers, because it indicates 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 55 

sufficiently that the first person singular is repre- 
sented ; but in French we shall have to say mon 
pere, ma mere, mes fr&res, because the nouns to 
which the adjectives mon, ma, mes add the idea of 
possession, are respectively masculine, feminine, 
and plural. For the same reason we w 7 ill trans- 
late hi? mother, her father, by sa mere, son pere, 
whether the person whose father and mother we 
speak of is man or womao ; the adjective having 
nothing to do with that person, but agreeing with 
the nouns father and mother. 

Questions. — What does the adjective express? 
How many classes of adjectives is there in 
French? — What adjectives serve to qualify nouns? 
Which class of adjectives define the condition of 
being of the noun? — What are the sub-divisions ? 
Enumerate the demonstrative adjectives ; the pos- 
sessive adjectives. — When are mon, ton, son, used 
instead of ma, ta, sa ? — Enumerate the indefinite 
adjectives. — Explain the difference between my, 
thy^ etc., and mon, ton, etc. 



EXERCISE. 

The pupil will fill the blanks and form the 
plural of the nouns where needed : 

I saw a man and a woman this morning. 
JPai vu et matin (m.) 



56 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

This boy and that girl are brother and sister, 
garpon et fille sont frere et soeur. 

My friend John has lost his books, 
ami Jean a perdu 

Those pupils love their teacher, 

eleves aiment maitre. (m ) 

My sisters will buy their gloves, 
soeurs aeheteront gants. (m.) 

That bird has lost its feathers, 
oiseau a perdu plume, (f.) 

Thou shalt love thy father and (thy) mother, 
Tu aimeras 

Each of us has his troubles and his joys, 

de nous a peines (f.) et joie. (f.) 

Your ancestors fought for their country, 
combattirent pour pays. 

All is wet, even my coat and my shirt, 

est mouille habit chemise, (f.) 

Several of our friends came on the same day, 

vinrent j our - ( m -) 

Such was the state of (the) affairs then, 
etait etat affaire alors. 

None of us saw the cat break the glasses, 
nous n'a vu casser verre. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 57 

Which book contains the second lesson ? 

contient lecon ? (f.) 

Her brother married his sister, 
epousa 

Some dog will steal your meat, 

volera viande. (f.) 



Formation of the Feminine. 

Whilst, in English, the same adjective, being 
invariable, serves to quality a masculine or femi- 
nine noun, as a good man, a good woman, in 
French we must change its termination, in order 
to show that the adjective agrees with its noun, 
and write un bon homrne, une bonne femme. 

As a general rule, the feminine is formed by 
adding a mute e to the masculine adjective. Ex : 
cher, chere ; vtl, vile ; gris, grise. But there are 
many exceptions to this rule. We will give here 
the most general ones, which may be easily re- 
membered and applied as rules. Those of a 
more limited class will be found in the exercise. 

1st. Masculine adjectives ending with mute e 
remain unchanged when qualifying a feminine 
noun. We say : homme aimable, femme aimable, 
ami sincere, amie sincere. 



58 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

2d. Adjectives with the terminations el, eil, ten, 
an, on, as, ais, es, os, ot, et, double the consonant 
before taking the mute e. Ex : tel, telle ; pareil, 
pareiUe ; ancien, ancienne, etc. However, complet, 
concrete discret, secret, inquiet, replet, become femi- 
nine by placing an accent (grave) on the e, and 
adding a mute e without doubling the consonant : 
complete, concrete, discrete, etc. 

3d. Adjectives ending with / and x form the 
feminine by substituting ve and se for those final 
consonants. Ex: heureiix, heureuse; neuf, neuve. 

But, doux (sweet,) faux (false,) roux (red- 
headed,) and vieux (old,) make in the feminine 
douce, fausse, rousse, and vieille. 

4th. Adjectives in erieur take a mute e. Ex : 
exterieur (exterior,) superieur (superior.) To which 
we shall add rnajcur (major,) mineur (minor,) and 
meilleur (better,) which also take an e. 

5th. Adjectives in eur, which are derived from 
the participle of a verb, as danseur (dancer,) de- 
rived from dansant (dancing,) change that termi- 
nation into euse, danseuse. 

6th. Adjectives in leur change this final into 
trice. Ex : conducteur (conductor,) conductrice. 

7th. Aigu, ambigu, begu, conligu, exigu, take e 
with a dioeresis : aigue, contigue. 

Questions. — What is the general rule for the 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 59 

formation of the feminine ? — How do you make 
the feminine of adjectives ending with a mute e ? 
What terminations double the final consonant and 
take e ? — What is the feminine termination of ad- 
jectives in f and x ? — What is the feminine final 
of adjectives in erieur ? in eur derived from a par- 
ticiple ? in teur ? in gu ? 



LIST OF EXCEPTIONAL FORMATIONS. 

Tiers, tierce — third. Frais, fraiche — fresh. 

Jumeau, jumelle — twin. Public, publique — public 

Beau, belle — fine. Turc, turque — Turkish. 

Nouveau, nouvelle — new. Grec, grecque — Greek. 

Fou, folle — crazy. Long, longue — long. 

Mou, molle — soft. Benin, benigne — mild. 

Blanc, blanche — white. Coi, coite — quiet. 

Franc, franche — frank. Sec, seche — dry. 

Favori, favorite — favorite. Nud, nue — naked 

Malin, maligne — malicious. 
Devin, devineresse — wizard. 
Pecheur, pecheresse — sinner. 
Chasseur, chasseresse — hunter. 
Enchanteur, enchanteresse — enchanter. 
Ambassadeur, embassadrice — ambassador. 
Gouverneur, gouvernante — governor. 
Serviteur, servante — servant. 



60 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

EXERCISE. 

Fill the blanks and form the feminine : 

My dear friend, (f.) you are very amiable, 
cher vous etes tres aimable. 

My brother is an excellent boy. My excellent sister 
est excellent 

John is a pretty boy; Clara also is very pretty, 
Jean est Clara aussi 

I have read the Testament and ancient history, 
J'ai lu Testament et (2) histoire. f. (1) 

Such is the case. Such is his manner (or way,) 
cas. maniere. 

This peasant is discreet. That peasant woman is 
paysan discrct. [discreet. 

He has had a secret interview with me, 

II a eu (2) entrevue (1) avec moi. 

Happy son, happy mother.* A furious cow. 
Heureux fils, mere. furieux vache. 

Put on your new hat and your new dress> 
Mettez votre neuf (2) chapeau (1) et robe. (1) f. 

This woman is false, that one is red-headed, 

celle la 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 61 

The girl is superior to her brother, 
fille a frere. 

Mr. Vestris was a great dancer. Fanny is a dancer 
etait grand Fanny 

My protector and my protectress, 
protecteur et 

His house is contiguous to mine, 
Sa maison a la mienne. 

My twin-brother; his twin-sister. 

(2) (1) (2) (1) 

She had a white hat and a white cape, 
Elle avait (2) (1) (2) pelerine, (f.) 

A graceful smile. A graceful young girl, 

gracieux sourire (m.) jeune 



Formation of the Plural. 

We have shown how adjectives must agree in 
gender; we must now show how they agree in 
number with the noun. 

General rule. — The plural of adjectives, femi- 
nine as well as masculine, is formed by adding an 
s : bons, bonnes ; sots^ sottes. 

1st Exception. — Adjectives ending with s, #, in 
the singular, remain unchanged in the plural : 
homme heureux, hommes heureux. 



62 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

2d. Adjectives in au take an x in the plural : 
beau, beaux. 

3d. Those in al mostly form the plural in aux : 
brutal, brutaux ; loyal, loyaux. 

It will be remarked that these exceptions apply 
only to masculine adjectives; for the feminines 
brutale, loyale, fatale, etc., come under the general 
rule, and take an s in the plural. It is the final 
ah not ale, which is changed into aux. 

The following, although ending in al, simply 
take an s in the plural : Final — final, 
Amical — friendly, Frugal — frugal, 

Fatal — fatal, Glacial — icy, 

Matinal — early riser, Nasal — nasal, 
Naval — naval, Pascal — paschal, 

Theatral — theatrical, Natal — natal. 
Some adjectives require a complement to com- 
plete their meaning, as digne de, worthy of; 
enclin a, inclined to, &c. The complement con- 
sists in a preposition and a word depending 
from it. 

Questions. — How is the plural of adjectives 
generally formed? — How is the plural formed 
when the adjective ends with s or x ? — How with 
adjectives in au ? in al ? — To which of the gen- 
ders do these exceptions apply ? — Why ? — What 
adjectives in al form their plural by the addition 
of an s ? — What do certain adjectives require ? 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 63 

EXERCISE. 

Form the plural and correct gender where re- 
quired : 

The good scholars study their lessons, 
ecolier etudient legon. (f.) 

Three gray coats and two black vests, 

gris(2) habit (1) deux noir (2) gilet (1) 

The old woman pursued the little boys, 
vieille poursuivirent petit 

The fine horseman ; the fine horsemen, 
beau cavalier 

Loyal father, loval mother, loyal sons. 

(2) (1) (2) (1) (2) (1) 

Do you hear those brutal men swearing? 
Entendez-vous jurer ? 

I have seen several naval fights, 
J'ai vu plusieurs combat-naval. 

The early-rising lark commences her songs, 
alouette (f.) commence chant. 

That man is not worthy of you, 
n'est pas digne vous. 

The icy winds froze our limbs, 
vent glacial gelaient membres. 



64 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

The final sounds are short, 
son final sont court. 

He is disdainful. A disdainful woman. 

II est dedaigneux. Une (2) (1) 

Are you content, my dear children ? 
Etes vous content, cher enfant? 

The adjectives always agree with their nouns 
s'accordent toujours (1) avec nom. 

A fine carriage, with two gray horses, 
carosse (m.) avec (2) (1) 

She is unworthy of your confidence, 
Elle indigne confiance. (f.) 

That girl was deaf and dumb, 
etait sourd muet. 



Pronouns. 

The French pronouns are divided into five 
classes, viz : Pronoms personnels, demonstratifs, 
possessifs, relatifs, et indefinis. 

PERSONAL PRONOUNS. 

First person: Je, I; me, moi, me or to me; 
nous, we, us, to us. 

Second person: Tu, thou; te, toi, thee, to thee ; 
vous, you, ye, to you. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 65 

Third person : 17, Us, he, they ; elle, dies, she, 
they; lux, him, her, to him, to her; eux, them (m.); 
le, la, les, him, her, them ; se, soi, himself, herself, 
oneVself; en, of or with him, her, them; y, to, 
at, about, or in him, her, them. 

Rules. — Pronouns must agree with their ante- 
cedents in gender and number. 

Je, hi, il, elle, nous, vous, Us, elles, subject of 
the verb, always precede it. Ex : Je vols, tu sais 7 
elle dit; except when the interrogative form is 
used : vois-je ? sais4u ? dit-elle ? This form is 
also used when quoting another's words, as in 
English : "But, said he,"— "Mais, dit il" 

Me, te, le, la, notes, vous, les, se, objective 
pronouns, precede the verb. Ex: He cannot do 
it : il ne peut le faire. He wants to see me : il 
veut me voir. I shall tell you : Je vous dirai. We 
will take them : nous les prendrons. She will cut 
herself : elle se coupera. 

Moi, toi, lui, elle, eux, elles, direct object, follow 
the verb : c^est moi, c^est toi, ce sont elles. 

With the imperative, the objective always comes 
after the verb, and if there are two, the direct 
object precedes the indirect. Ex : Give me that 
book: donnez-raoi ce livre. Give it to me: donnez 
le moi. 

En and y apply speciallv to things, although 
5 



66 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

used when speaking of persons for a elle, a lui, 
a euxj but the latter must never be used in refer- 
ence to things. Ex : I am thinking of him (rela- 
ting to a person,) can be translated Py pense, or, 
Je pense a lui ; what do you think of her ? — qu'en 
pensez vous, or, que pensez vous d'elle ? but, if 
speaking of a thing or animal, the latter construc- 
tion cannot be used, and we must render "I think 
of it," "do you want it?" by "JPy pense," "en 
voulez-vous." 

The sense of en and y, pronouns, is different 
from that of en, preposition, which signifies in, 
and has always an object; and y, adverb, which 
means there. 

JLe, to, les, pronouns, always accompany a verb, 
and can be, therefore, easily distinguished from fe, 
Za, les, articles, which always precede a noun. 

Questions. — How many classes of pronouns is 
there in French ? — Recite the personal pronouns. 
What is the rule ? — What pronouns are subjects 
and precede the verb ? — Except when ? — What 
objective pronouns precede the verb? which come 
after it? — How when the imperative is used? — 
What does en and y apply to ? — What is the 
meaning of the preposition en ? of the adverb y ? 
What is the difference between the pronouns and 
the articles Ze, Za, les ? 



:i 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 67 

EXERCISE. 

I said thou art lost, if he hears what you say, 
Je dis es perdu si entend ce que dites. 

We shall learn our lessons quicker than you, 
apprendrons lepon plus vite que" 

What are they doing? They are cutting some wood 
Que font-ils? coupent du bois. 

I have seen them, They will kill me, 

Je ai vu tueront 

He sees her, She despises him, It is for them, 
voit meprise C'est pour eux 

Every one for himself. One owes to oneVself, 
Chacun pour soi. On doit a soi-meme. 

Note. — The pronouns me, te, se, nous, vous, are 
used after the subject pronouns in the conjugation 
of reflected verbs, called in French verbes pro- 
nominaux ; they express the action of the verb as 
performed on the subject, or in other words, that 
the same person is subject and object. Ex : Je 
me leve, I rise (me;) tu fassieds, thou sittest (thee;) 
il se couche, he lies (him) down; nous nous battens, 
we fight (us or ourselves ;) vous vous connaxssez, 
you know you (or yourself;) Us or elles se presen- 
ted, they present them (or themselves.) It will 
be seen from these examples that the objective 



68 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

pronoun in some of the verbs can be rendered in 
English, and in others it cannot. 

"We fought and he whipped me ; I would not cry, 
battimes et vainquit 

He laid him down . to die, 
coucha pour mourir. 

Man believes himself great, 
L'homme croit grand. 

You have my copy-book; give it to me, I pray you 
avez cahier ; donnez prie 

Let us go to the theatre. I was thinking of it, 
Allons JPy pensais 

You have some fine wood, what will you do with it? 
avez de qu'en ferez vous 

What do you think of it? What can I do about it? 
pensez Qu'y puis-je faire 

She mocks him, We shall come back to it, 

s'en moque reviendrons 

Have you some money? how much (of it) have you? 
de Pargent ? combien 

Let us pass on to another lesson, 
Passons un autre 

What is the subject of it? Still the pronouns, 
Quel en est le sujet ? Encore les pronoms. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 69 

DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS. 

These pronouns add an idea of demonstration 
or indication to the noun for which they stand. 

Ce, (always joined to the verb etre, or followed 
by the pronouns que, qui, quoi, dont,) it, that. It 
is the man : c^est Vhomme. That which I see : ce 
que je vois. 

Celui, celle ; ceux, celles ; this or that, the one, 
these or those, the ones for both genders. Gen- 
erally followed by de or que. 

Celui-ci, celle-ci, this one; ceux-ci, celles-ci, these. 

Celui-la, celle-la, that one; ceux-la, celles-la, those. 

Ceci, cela, literally "this here," "that there," 
conveys the idea of something being pointed at 
without being named. The syllables ci and la 
attached to a noun, convey the idea of comparison 
between two objects, one of which is nearer than 
the other to the speaker. The use of all these 
pronouns is exemplified in the following : 

A qui ce livre ? 

To whom (belongs) this book ? 

(Test celui de mon frere, 
It is that of my brother. 

Ceux-ci appartiennent au maitre et celui-la est a vous. 
These belong to the teacher and that one is yours. 

Ce livre-ci est il a vous ? 
Is this book yours ? 



70 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Non, mais ce cahier-la m'appartient, 
No, but that copy-book belongs to me. 

Et ceci ? Je ne sais a qui est cela, 

And this ? I do not know whose that is. 

Questions. — What is a demonstrative pronoun? 
Recite these pronouns. — Why is ci or la attached 
to a noun ? — Give us the example embracing the 
different demonstrative pronouns. 



EXERCISE. 

Note. — In French, the apostrophical s is never 
used to form the possessive of a noun; u the man's 
hat" must be rendered "Le chapeau de Vhomme" 
literally "the hat of the man." Consequently, 
when the name of the object possessed is not 
mentioned, but the pronoun is used instead, or 
understood, the same construction will be observed. 
Ex : It is not the man's hat, but my brother's — Ce 
n'est pas le chapeau de Phomme, mais celui de 
mon frere. The pronoun that, evidently under- 
stood in the English text, must be expressed in 
French. 

Will you have this hat or that one ? This one. 
Voulez vous ou 

The one which I seek is not here. What is that? 
que je cherche n'est pas ici. Qu'est 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 71 

These soldiers are good, those are bad, 

soldats sont bon, sont mauvais. 

These pens are better than those, 
plume (f.) meilleures que 

My lesson is shorter than my sister's, 
est plus courte que 

Those children are prettier than Julia's, 
sont plus joli que 

Those of your friend are still prettier. 

sont encore plus joli. 

I like better this one than that one, 
Paime mieux que 

This is not agreeable, That is worthless, 

n'est pas agreable. ne vaut rien. 

Do you want some of this or of that? 
Voulez-vous de ou de 

Those who have recited their lessons may go, 

qui ont recite peuvent s'en aller. 

That is right, Those who have been lazy will stay 
C'est bien. qui ont ete paresseux resteront 



POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS. 



Le mien, la mienne, les miens, les miennes — mine. 
Le tien, la tienne, les tiens, les tiennes — thine. 



72 FIRST STEPS IK FRENCH. 

Le sien, la sienne, les siens, les siennes — his, hers, 
Le notre, la notre, les notres — ours. [its. 

Le votre, la votre, les votres — yours. 
Le leur, la leur, les leurs — theirs. 

The student will remember what has been said 
about the possessive adjective agreeing with the 
object possessed, and apply the same rule to the 
possessive pronoun. 

"His wife and mine ; my husband and hers," 
must be translated: "Sa femme et la mienne; mon 
mari et le sien," the pronoun being governed by its 
antecedent only in person, and agreeing in gender 
and number with the nouns wife, husband. 



EXERCISE. 

Thou hast my pen and I have thine, 
as et Pai 

Your mother and mine will come to-day, 

viendront anjourd'hui. 

Is this house larger than yours? or ours? 
Cette maison est-elle plus grande que ? 

Take yours and give them theirs, (pi.) 
Prenez et donnez 

Lend him your knife, his is broken, 
Pretez couteau est casse. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 73 

These are mine, those others are hers, 
Celles-ci sont ces autres sont 

My horse is better than yours and his, 
cheval est meilleur 

Will you tell me which is yours ? 
Voulez-vous dire lequel est 

This school is better than theirs, 
ecole est que 



RELATIVE PRONOUNS. 

These pronouns recall the idea of a noun or 
preceding pronoun with which they are closely 
connected or related. They are : 

Qui — who, whoever, whom, that, which. 
Que — whom, that, what ? 
Quoi — what! what? 
Dont — whose, of whom, of which. 
Lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles — which, 
which one, that, whom. 

The relative pronoun takes the gender, number 
and person of its antecedent, and must be placed 
as near as possible to that antecedent : Moi qui 
suis eslime, toi qui es estime. La paresse est un 
vice que les hommes surmontent difficilement. 

Qui, object of a preposition, relates only to per 



74 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

sons or things personified. Le marchand a qui je 
dois. Rocher a qui je me plains. 

Lequel, laquelle, are used instead of qui for 
things not personified : Le cheval sur lequel je suis 
monte. But qui, que, dont, are used instead of 
lequel, laquelle, to avoid ambiguity : J^ai vu le mari 
de voire soeur, lequel viendra me voir. In this sen- 
tence, qui would leave a doubt whether it is the 
husband or the sister who will come, whilst lequel 
makes the sense clear. 

Qui is generally the subject of a verb, and may 
then relate to things or persons. 

Que is always used as an object, and refers both 
to persons and things. 

Qui est la ? L'homme qui parle, 

Who is there ? The man who speaks. 

Le livre dont je parle, L'homme que je vois, 

The book of which I speak. The man whom I see. 

Qui cherchez-vous ? Que voulez-vous? 

Who are you looking for? What do you want? 

Qui que ce soit, 
Whoever it may be. 

Questions. — What is a relative pronoun? — 
Recite the relative pronouns. — What is the rule 
concerning these pronouns and their antecedents ? 
What does qui, object of a preposition, relate to ? 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 75 

When are lequel, laquelle, used instead of qui ? — 
When qui is subject of a verb, what may it relate 
to ? — What about que ? 



EXERCISE. 

God, who hears me, knows the truth, 
Dieu m'entend connait verite. 

What do you think of that man? 
pensez de 

What! have you not studied your lesson? 
n'avez-vous pas etudie 

The book of which I speak is interesting, 

Je parle interessant. 

Which of these soldiers killed the pig ? 

soldats a-t-il tue le cochon ? 

Which of you, young ladies, has taken my flowers ? 
mesdemoiselles pris fleurs ? 

Which will you take, the large or the small ones ? 
prendrez grand petit 

What are you thinking about, my friend? 
pensez-vous 

The best friend that I have had is dead, 
meilleur j'aie eu mort 



76 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

The scholar who spoke shall be punished, 
6colier a parle sera puni. 

The lawyer of whom we were speaking is sick, 
avocat nous parlions malade. 

The child for whom I have done so much, 

tant (2) fait. 

Are you the gentleman whom I saw ? 
Etes monsieur j'ai vu? 

Are you the person to whom I spoke ? 
personne j'ai parle? 



INDEFINITE PRONOUNS. 

The indefinite pronouns designate vaguely the 
persons or things that they recall to the mind. 
These pronouns are on, one, some one; quiconque, 
whoever, whosoever ; quelqvfun, somebody ; cha- 
cun, each ; autrui, others ; Ptm, the one ; Pautre, 
the other; Pun P autre , les uns le$ autres, each 
other ; Pun el Pautre, both ; personne^ nobody. 

The indefinite adjectives aucun, nul, certain^ 
plusieurS) tel, when not accompanying a noun, 
may be considered as indefinite pronouns. 

Questions. — In what manner do indefinite pro- 
nouns recall their antecedents? — Recite the in- 
definite pronouns. — What adjectives may be con- 
sidered as indefinite pronouns ? 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 77 



EXERCISE. 



Note. — The pronoun on, although translated 
here "some one," is still more vague in its mean- 
ing. It relates to some person, or persons, un- 
known or not specially designated. Thus, On a 
pris mon lime, can be rendered, Some one has 
taken my book ; On a dit cela, Some one has said 
so (or that;) Que dit on ? What is said? Pourquoi 
court-on la has ? Why are people running there (in 
that direction ?) On ferait bien dPabattre cette 
maison, It would be well that this house should be 
pulled down. Some writers also render on by 
they, as on dit, they say; que dit-on? wdiat do they 
say? but the antecedent of a personal pronoun 
ought to be clearly designated, and it is more cor- 
rect to use one of the vague forms given above. 

What has been done with my hat? 

fait de mon chapeau ? 

One ought to reflect before speaking, 
doit reflechir avant de parler. 

Whoever said that is a liar, 

a dit menteur. 

Somebody is knocking at the door, 
frappe la porte. 



78 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Each of us had his task done, 
de nous avait sa tache faite. 

We must respect the property of others, 
II faut respecter le bien 

One says white, the other says black, 
L' dit blanc, dit noir. 

They are trying to deceive each other, 
essaient de se tromper 

Both are wrong to speak thus, 
ont tort de parler ainsi. 

Nobody believes what they say, 

ne croit a ce quails disent. 

None has arrived, that I know, 
n'est arrive, je sache. 



The Verbs. 

There are five sorts of verbs in French: le 
verbe actif, le verbe passif, le verb neutre, le verbe 
pronominal^ and le verbe nnipersonnel. 

The active (transitive) verb expresses an act 
performed by the subject, and has a direct object: 
J'aime mon pere, I love my father. 

The passive verb expresses an act suffered by 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 79 

the subject: Mon pere est aime de moi, My father 
is loved by me. 

The neuter verb (intransitive,) although express- 
ing action, has no direct object like the active 
verb : Je travaille avec courage, I labor with 
courage. 

The pronominal (reflected) verb is conjugated 
with two pronouns of the same person, and may 
be said to express the action of the subject upon 
itself. In French the reflected form is very often 
used, and some verbs cannot be conjugated other- 
wise. 

The unipersonal or impersonal verb can only 
be conjugated in the third person singular; the 
pronoun, in this instance, having no real antece- 
dent. Such are il plcut, it rains; il neige, it snows. 
Sometimes other verbs (neuter, passive or reflect- 
ed,) are used like impersonal verbs, and we say il 
tombe de la neige, it falls snow or snow is falling; 
il se presente une difficulty a difficulty presents 
itself. 

MOODS AND TENSES. 

French verbs have five moods and eight tenses. 

The indicative mood presents the affirmation in 
a positive manner : J^aime, fairnais, fai aime, I 
love, loved, have loved. It embraces the eight 
tenses. 



80 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

The conditional mood affirms doubtfully with a 
condition : Je viendrais si f avals le temps, I would 
come if I had time. This mood has two tenses. 

The imperative has only one tense — it expresses 
command, exhortation or wish : attendez, veuillez 
attendre, wait, please to wait. 

The subjunctive is always subordinate to an- 
other's action : Je desire que vous veniez, I wish 
that you may come ; Je desirais que vous vinssiez^ 
I wished that you might come. 

The infinitive presents the idea vaguely, without 
designating person or number. 

Questions. — How many kinds of verbs are 
there in French and what are they ? — Define the 
active verb ; the passive verb ; the neuter verb ; 
the pronominal; the unipersonal. — How many 
moods and tenses have the French verbs? — Define 
the indicative ; the conditional ; the imperative ;, 
the subjunctive ; the infinitive. 



The Four Conjugations and the Auxiliary Verbs. 

The French verbs are divided into four conju- 
gations, recognized by the termination of the in- 
finitive : 

1st conjugation ending in er, as aimer, to love. 

2d, ending in m, as finir, to finish. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 81 

3d, ending in om, as recevoir, to receive. 
4th, ending in re, as rendre, to render. 

The models having been studied, all other reg- 
ular verbs can be conjugated accordingly. The 
irregular verbs must be studied apart, at least the 
tenses in which the irregularities exist. 

All verbs are conjugated with the help of the 
auxiliaries avoir, to have, and etre, to be. 
Avoir helps to conjugate : 

1st. All the active verbs, — fai aime, nous 
aurons hi. 

2d. The greater number of neuter verbs, — hi 
as dormi. 

3d. A few impersonal verbs, — il a fallu. 

Etre conjugates: 
1st. All the passive verbs, — je suis estime. 
2d. Most of the impersonal verbs, — il est resulte. 
3d. All the pronominal verbs, — Je rne suis flatti. 

Note. — We shall now proceed to conjugate 
verbs. The explanations accompanying each tense 
of the indicative mood should be carefully studied, 
as they will guide the student in the use of the 
tenses of other verbs. Instead of seeking for the 
corresponding English tense, it is better to trans- 
late simply according to the sense. For example, 
we say, using the suhjonctif present, which corres- 
ponds with the English potential: Je crains quHl 
6 



82 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

■ i — ... 

ne jinisse pas sou tableau. If we use the poten- 
tial form, the translation will be : I fear that he 
may not finish his picture, — leaving it doubtful 
whether he may or not ; but, if we say : I fear he 
will not finish his picture, the sense is positive as 
regards the action of the person spoken of, and 
subject or nominative of the verb finish. 

Avoir — To Have. 

INDICATIVE MOOD. 

Le Present expresses the fact affirmed as taking 
place at the time of speaking. 

J'ai de bon vin, I have some good wine. 

Tu as un grand cheval, Thou hast a large horse. 

II (elle) a mon chapeau, He (or she) has my hat. 

Nous avons du pain. We have some bread. 

Vous avez des amis, You have some friends. 

lis (elles) out des gateaux, They have some cakes. 

ISImparfait. The fact is affirmed simply as 
passed, or, as present relatively to a past period. 
J^airnais mon p&re, I loved my father ; Je dormais 
qaand vous vintes, I was sleeping when you came. 
It has the latter sense in neuter verbs. 
J'avais de l'argent, 1 had some money. 

Tu, avals des fruits, Thou hadst some fruit. 

II (elle) avait mon canif. He (or she) had my penknife 
Nous avions une maison, We had a house. 
Vous aviez un oncle, You had an uncle. 

lis (elles) avaient une tante, They had an aunt. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 83 

Le Passe dtfini: Relates to a period of time 
completely passed, as a year, a month, a day. 

J'eus des fleurs en Avril, Iliad flowers in April. 
Tu eus des ananas hier, Thou liaclst pine-apples. 
II {die) eut des fraises, He {or she) had strawberries. 
Nous eurnes du vent en Mars, We had wind in March. 
Vous eutes des petits pois, You had green peas. 
lis {ettes) eurent un pate, They had a pie. 

Le Passe indfrfini. This tense expresses an act 
accomplished in a time entirely or partially elapsed, 
as yesterday or to-day. 

J'ai eu de l'argent, I have had money. 

Tu as eu de Thonneur, Thou hast had honor. 

Le Passe AnUrieur always expresses an act 
accomplished previous to another, in the past: 
Quand il eut Jini, il se concha ; when he had fin- 
ished, he went to bed. This sense cannot be so 
apparent in Avoir, conjugated as an active verb. 

J 9 eus eu un frere, I had had a brother. 

Tu eus eu une soeur, Thou hadst had a sister. 

II {elle) eut eu un matelas, He or she had had a mattres. 

Nous eurnes eu des verres, We had had glasses. 

Vous eutes eu le sel, You had had the salt. 

lis eurent eu la selle, They had had the saddle. 

Ij€ Plus-que-<parfait expresses a fact, not only in 
the past at the time of speaking, but in the past 



84 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

relatively to another past action, as, I had finished 
when you entered ; J ]avais fini quand vous entrates. 

J' avals eu mon I, thou, he, ive, you, they had 

Tu avals eu ton had my, thy, his, our, 

II avalt eu son your, their discharge, 

Nous avlons eu notre when the war ended. 

Vous avlez eu votre 
lis avalent eu leur conge quand la guerre finit. 

Le Futur expresses that the action is to take 
place at a period not yet reached. 



P 

< 



J' aural »■ I shall or will 

Tu auras gf Thou shalst or wilst 

II (die) aura a o He shall or will 

Nous aurons We shall or will 

Vous aurez g You shall or will B 

lis (dies) auront |. They shall or will 



o 



c 
*-t 

»-i 
o 

3 



Le Futur AnUrieur affirms an act to be accom- 
plished before a given future time. Avoir can 
better express this with another verb. 

J y aural eu § I shall or will have had £ 

Tu auras eu :? Thou wilt have had 

II (die) aura eu S He or she will have had 



o 



►a 



Nous anrons eu g We shall have had 

Vous aurez eu * You. shall have had 

lis (elles) auralent eu g They shall have had 



D 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 85 

Conditionnel present. What would be if a cer- 
tain condition was complied with. 

J' aurais une pomme, I would have an apple. 

Tu aurais le prix, Thou wouldst have the prize 

II aurait mon livre, He would have ruy book. 

Nous aurions des peches, We would have some peaches 

Vous auriez des souliers, You would have some shoes. 

lis auraient du beurre, They would have some butter 

Conditionnel passe. What would have been, if 
certain conditions had been fulfilled. 

J'aurais eu, I would have had. 

Tu aurais eu, Thou shouldst have had. 

II {die) aurait eu, He would have had. 

Nous aurions eu, We should have had. 

Vons auriez eu, You would have had. 

lis auraient eu, They should have had. 

The same is expressed by j'eusse eu, tu eusses eu, il 
eut eu, nous eussions eu, vous eussiez eu, Us eussent eu. 

lmpiraiif- — command or invitation. 

Aie la bonte, Have the goodness. 

Ayons de la patience, Let us have patience. 

Ayez du courage, Have courage. 

Subjonctif. This mood, which has four tenses, 
is the most difficult to translate. In nine cases 
out of ten, the student fails to make a sentence 
having common sense, by trying to render the sub- 
jonctif by the English potential, as given in the 



86 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

models of conjugation. Let us simply bear in 
mind that the action expressed by the verb in this 
mood is subordinate to a necessity, a will, a desire, 
an interrogation or a doubt expressed by another 
verb, and use any tense of the English verb that 
will express the idea clearly. 

PRESENT OU FUTUR. 

II faut que faie mon livre ce soir, 
I must have my book this evening. 

Je veux que tu axes de jolis habits, 

I want you to have some pretty clothes. 

Croyez-vous qu'il ait des oranges? 

Do you believe that he has any oranges? 

II ne croit pas que nous ayons du courage, 
He does not believe that we have courage. 

Je desire que vous ayez du bonheur, 
I desire that you may have happiness. 

Je doute qu!elles aient du talent, 

I doubt whether they have talent. 

I M P A R F A I T . 

II faudrait que j'eusse mon parapluie, 

It would be necessary that I should have my umbrella. 

II serait bon que tu eusses quelque argent, 

It would be well that thou shouldst have some money. 

Je ne croyais pas qu'il eut des amis, 
I did not believe that he had friends. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 87 

II voudrait que nous eussions de Tor, 
He would want us to have gold. 

II serait juste que vous eussiez des gateaux, 
It would be just that you should have cakes. 

Pensiez vous qu'ils eussent vos places ? 
Did you think that they had your places ? 

P A s's E . 

Quoique j'aie eu des amis, 
Although I have had friends. 

Est-il possible que tu axes eu tant d' argent? 

Is it possible that thou hast had so much money ? 

Croyez-vous qu'il ait eu sa place? 
Do you think that he has had his place ? 

Faut-il que nous ayons eu du malheur ! 
Must it be that we have had such bad luck ! 

II doute que vous ayez eu ce courage, 

He doubts that you could have had that courage. 

Je ne crois pas qu'ils aient eu le temps, 
I do not think that they have had time. 

PLUS-QUE-PARFAIT. 

Supposez que j'eusse eu votre verre, 
Suppose that I should have had your glass. 

J'attendais que tu eusses eu ta part, 

I was waiting until thou shouldst have thy share. 

Nous ne pensions pas qu'il eut eu besoin de nous, 
We did not think he would have wanted us. 



88 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

II craignait que nous eussions eu des tracas, 
He feared that we might have had trouble. 

Nous voudrions que vous eussiez eu plus de patience, 
We would wish that you had had more patience. 

II faudrait qu'ils eussent eu moins de vanite. 
They ought to have had less vanity. 

INFINITIF PRESENT. 

Avoir de la patience dans l'adversite. 
To have patience in adversity. 

PASSE. 

Avoir eu des amis, et n'en plus avoir ! 

To have had friends, and to have them no more ! 

PARTICIPES PRESENT ET PASSE. 

Ay ant egard, eu egard, ay ant eu egard a sa qualite, 
Having regard, regard had, having had regard for his 

[quality. 

REMARKS. — Avoir is the only verb that can 
oe conjugated without the help of any other verb, 
the compound tenses being formed by adding the 
past participle eu to the simple tenses. A little 
attention to this formation of tenses will save 
much labor to the pupil. When avoir is used as 
an auxiliary to form the compound tenses of other 
verbs, it is only its simple tenses which are used, 
with the past participle of the verb conjugated. 
Example : 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 89 

SIMPLE TENSE. COMPOUND TENSE. 

Indicatif Present : J'ai. — Passe Indefini : J'ai eu, j'ai 

ete, j'ai fini, j'ai aime, etc. 
Imparfait : J'avais. — Plus-que-parfait : J'avais eu, 

j'avais fini, j'avais aime, etc. 

Passe Defini : J'eus. — Passe anterieur : J'eus eu, 

j'eus fini, j'eus aime, etc. 
Futur: J'aurai. — Futur anterieur : J'aurai eu, j'aurai 

fini, j'aurai aime, etc. 
Conditionnel pr.: J'aurais. — Cond. passe: J'aurais eu, 

j'aurais fini, j'aurais aime, etc. 
Subjonctif pres.: Que j'aie. — Subj. passe : Que j'aie eu, 

que j'aie fini, que j'aie aime, etc. 

Imparfait du Subj.: Que j'eusse. — Plus-que-P.: Que 

j'eusse eu, que j'eusse aime, etc. 



It is, therefore, not necessary to give here more 
than the simple tenses of the verb Etre, since its 
compound tenses can be made by adding its parti- 
ciple, ete, to the simple tenses of avoir. 

Instead of conjugating etre with sentences as 
we have done for avoir, we will use the past parti- 
ciples of verbs conjugated passively with etre as 
an auxiliary. We say passively, because those 
same verbs conjugated in their active sense would 
have their own simple tenses, and would form the 
compound ones with the verb avoir as an auxiliary. 



90 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Etre, verbe substantif ou auxiliaire. 

INDICATIF PRESENT. 

Je suis aime, ou aimee — I am loved. 

Tu es beni, ou benie — Thou art blessed. 

II ou elle est cheri, ou cherie — He or she is cherished. 

Nous sommes battus, ou battues— We are beaten. 

Vous etes adores, ou adorees — You are adored. 

lis ou elles sont pris, ou prises — They are taken. 

IMPARFAIT. 

J'etais vole, ou volee — I was robbed. 
Tu etais vaincu, ou vaincue — Thou wast vanquished. 
II ou elle etait trompe, ou trompee — He or she was de- 
ceived. 
Nous etions habitues, ou habituees — We were accustomed 
Vous etiez invites, ou invitees — You were invited, 
lis ou elles etaient mis, ou mises — They were put. 

PASSE DEFINI. 

Je fas endurci ou endurcie — I was hardened. 

Tu fus blame ou blamee — Thou wast blamed. 

II ou elle fut reduit ou reduite — He or she was reduced. 

Nous fumes desoles ou desolees — We were disconsolate. 

Vous futes consoles ou consolees — You were comforted. 

lis ou elles furent vus ou vues — They were seen. 

FUTUR. 

Je serai porte ou portee — I shall be carried. 
Tu seras prepare ou preparee — Thou wilt be prepared. 
II ou elle sera regu ou regue — He or she will be received 
Nous serons decides ou decidees — We shall be decided. 
Vous serez obliges ou obligees — You will be obliged, 
lis ou elles seront tues ou tuees — They will be killed. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 91 

CONDITIONNEL. 

Je serais excite ou excitee — I should be excited. 
Tu serais anime ou animee — Thou wouldst be animated. 
II ou elle serait gueri ou guerie — He or she would be 

[cured, 
Nous serious ecoutes ou ecoutees— We would be listened to 
Vous seriez entendus ou entendues — You would be heard 
lis ou elles seraient nes ou nees — They would be born. 

IMPERATIF. 

Sois aime ou aimee — Be (thou) loved. 
Soyons armes ou armees — Let us be armed. 
Soyez confondus, confondues — Be confounded. 

SUBJONCTIF PRESENT. 

Que je sois compris ou comprise — That I may be under- 
stood. 
Que tu sois ruine ou ruinee— That thou shouldst be ruined 
Qu'il ou qu'elle soit cru ou crue — That he or she may 

[be believed. 
Que nous soyons empeches, ees — That we shall be pre- 
Que vous soyez vendus, es — That you are sold, [vented. 
Qu'ils ou qu'elles soient connus, es — That they can be 

[known. 

IMPARFAIT. 

Que je fusse abandonne, ee — That I should be abandoned 
Que tu fusses denonce, ee — That thou shouldst be de- 
nounced. 
Qu'ilj qu'elle fut brule, ee — That he, she should be 

[burned. 
Que nous fussions decouverts, tes — That we should be 

[discovered. 



92 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

INFINITIF PRESENT. 

Etre aime, aimee, aimes, aimees — To be loved. 

PASSE. 

Avoir ete aime, ee, es, ees — To have been loved. 

PARTICIPE PRESENT. 

Etant aime, ee, es, ees — Being loved. 

PASSE. 

Ayant ete aime, ee, es, ees — Having been loved. 



It will be remarked that the past participle of 
avoir is invariable, whilst that of etre agrees in 
number and gender with the person. A woman 
will write J^ai vu, je suis vue, nous avons aime, 
nous sommes aimees. 

In conjugating active verbs passively, all the 
tenses of etre are used ; Tai iU blesse, que feusse 
Mi tu6, etc. But in the conjugation of neuter 
verbs, the simple tenses only, of etre, are used to 
form the compound tenses, those verbs having their 
own simple tenses. And we say, je pars, I depart ; 
Je suis parti, fttais parti, etc. Je sors, I go out ; 
je suis sorti, je serais sorti, etc. 



FIRST STEPS IX FRENCH. 93 

Models of Verbs of the 1st and 2d Conjugations. 
AIMER— FINER. 

Note. — All regular active verbs ending in er 
and ir will be conjugated according to these 
models, with avoir as auxiliary to form the com- 
pound tenses. 

INDICATIF PRESENT. 

J'aime, I love. Je finis, I finish. 

Tu aimes, Thou lovest. Tu finis, Thou finishest. 
II, elle, airae, He, she loves. II, elle finit, He finishes. 
Nous aimons, We love. Nous finissons, We finish. 
Vous aimez, You love. Vous finissez, Tou finish, 

lis, elles aiment, They love. lis, elles finissent — They 

[finish. 

IMPARFAIT. 

J'aiinais, I loved. Je finissais, I finished. 

Tu aimais, Thou lovedst. Tu finissais, Thou finishedst 
II, elle aimait,He, she loved. II finissait, He finished. 

Nous aitnions, We loved. Nous finissions, We finished 

Vous aimiez, You loved. Yous finissiez, You finished 

lis, elles ainaaient, They lis finissaient, They finished 
[loved. 

PASSE DEFINI. 

J'aimai, I did love. Je finis, I did finish. 

Tu aimas, Thou didst love. Tu finis, Thou didst finish, 
II airaa, He did love II finit, He did finish. 

Nous ainiaraes,We did love. Nous finimes, We did finish 
Yous aimates, You did love. Yous finites, You did finish, 
lis ainierent, They did love. lis finirent, They did finish. 



94 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



FUTUR. 



J'aimerai, I shall 
Tu aimeras ? Thou shalt 
II aimera, He shall o 

Nous aimerons, We shall © 
Vous aimerez,You shall 
lis aimeront, They shall 



Je finirai, I shall 
Tu finiras, Thou shalt 
II finira, He shall 
Nous finirons, We shall 
Vous finirez, You shall 
lis finiront, They shall 



t3 



CONDITIONNEL PRESENT. 

J'aimerais, I would Je finirais, I would 

Tuaimerais,Thouwouldst Tu finirais, Thouwouldst 
II aimerait, He would 5* II finirait, He would g 3 
Nous aimerions,We would 2 Nous finirions, We would g! 
Vous aimeriez, You would Vous finiriez, You would * 
lis aimeraientjThey would lis finiraient, They would 

IMPERATIF. 



Aime, Love. 
Aimons, Let us love. 
Aimez, Love. 


Finis, Finish. 
Finissons, Let us finish. 
Finissez, Finish. 


SUBJONCTIF PRESENT. 


Que j'aime, 
Que tu aimes, 
Qu'il aime, 
Que nous aimions, 
Que vous aimiez, 
Qu'ils aiment, 


That I love 
That thou lovest * 
That he loves jjT 
That we love 
That you love < 
That they love 


Que je finisse, 
Que to finisse, 
Qu'il finisse, 
Que nous finissions, 
Que vous finissiez, 
Qu'ils finissent, 


That I finish 
That thou finishest 2 
That he finish | 
That we finish & 
That you finish B. 
That they finish F 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 95 



IMPARFAIT 


DU SUBJ. 




Que j'aimasse, 


That I should 




Que tu aimasses, 


That thou wouldst 




Qu'il aimat, 


That he should 


o 


Que nous aimassions, 


That we would 


< 


Que vous aimassiez, 


That you should 




Qu'ils aimassent, 


That they would 




Que je finisse, 


That I should 




Que tu finisses, 


Thou wouldst 


5. 


Qu'il finit, 


He should 


Que n. finissions, 


We would 


5" 


Que v. finissiez, 


Tou would 




Qu'ils finissent, 


They should 





INFINITIF PRESENT. 

Aimer, to love. Finir, to finish. 

PASSE. 

Avoir aime, to have loved. Avoir fini, to have finished. 

PARTICIPE PRESENT. 

Aimant, loving, Finissant, finishing. 

PASSE. 

Aime, aimee, ayant aim£, Loved, having loved. 
Fini, finie, ayant fini, Finished, having finished. 



Remark. — The neuter verbs in er and ir form 
their simple tenses according to these models, but 
some form their compound tenses with avoir and 
some with etre. 



96 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Models of the 3d and 4th Conjugations. 

KECEVOIR.— RENDRE. 

The remarks given with the other models apply 
to these for the verbs ending in oir and re. 

INDICATIF PRESENT. 

Je regois, I receive. Je rends, I render. 

Tu regois, Thou receivest. Tu rends, Thou renderest, 

II regoit, He receives. II rend, He renders. 

Ns recevons, We receive. ISfs rendons, We render. 

Vs recevez, You receive. Ys rendez, You render, 

lis regoivent, They receive, lis rendent, They render. 

IMPARFAIT. 

Je recevais, I received. Je rendais, I rendered. 
Tu recevais, Thou receivedst.Tu rendais, Thou renderest. 
II recevait, He received. II rendait, He rendered. 
Ns recevions, We received. Ns rendions, We rendered. 
Ys receviez, You received. Ys rendiez, You rendered, 
lis recevaient,They received.Ils rendaient,They rendered! 

PASSE DEFINI. 

Je regus, I did Je rendis, I did 

Tu regus, Thou didst H Tu rendis, Thou didst ^ 

II regut, He did | II rendit, He did | 

Ns regimes, We did §• Ns rendimes, We did §* 

Vs regutes, You did ? Ys rendites, You did ? 

lis regurent, They did lis rendirent, They did 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



97 



FUTUR. 



Je recevrai, I shall 
Tu recevras, Thou shalst 
II recevra, He shall 
Ns recevrons, We shall 
Vs recevrez, You shall 
lis recevrontj They shall 



Je rendrai, I shall 
Tu rendras, Thou shalst 
II rendra, He shall 
Ns rendrons, We shall 
Vs rendrez, You shall 
lis rendront, They shall 



CONDITIONNEL PRESENT. 



Je recevrais, 
Tu recevrais, 
II recevrait, 
Ns recevrions, 
Vs recevriez, 
lis recevraient, 

Je rendrais, 
Tu rendrais, 
11 rendrait, 
Ns rendrions, 
Vs rendriez^ 
lis rendraient, 



I would 
Thou wouldst 
He should 
We would 
You should 
They would 
I would 
Thou wouldst 
He would 
We would 
You would 
They would 



o 
a 
o 

< 

CD 



CD 

P 

CD 



IMPERATIF. 

Eeeois, Eeceive. Eends, Eender. 

Eecevons, Let us receive. Eendons, Let us render. 
Eecevez, Keceive. Eendez, Eender. 



SUBJONCTIF PRESENT. 



Que je reeoive, 
Que tu regoives, 
Qu'il regoive, 
Que ns recevions, 
Que vs receviez, 
Qu'ils regoivent, 
7 



That I receive 
That thou receivest 
That he receives 
That we receive 
That you receive 
That they receive 






98 



FIRST STEPS 1ST FRENCH. 



Que je rende, 


That I render 


o 


Que tu rendes, 


That thou renderest 


CO 


Qu'il rende, 


That he renders 


>-> 


Que ns rendions, 


That we render 


HS 


Que vs rendiez, 


That you render 


P-» 


Qu'ils rendent, 


That they render 


CD 


IMPARFAIT 


DU SUB J. 




Que je regusse, 


That I should 




Que tu regusses, 


That thou shouidst 


»-* 


Qu'il regut, 


That he should 


CD 
O 
CD 


Que ns regussions, 


That we should 


i— '• 

< 


Que vs regussiez, 


That you should 


CD 


Qu'ils regussent, 


That they should 




Que je rendisse, 


That I should 




Que tu rendisses, 


That thou shouidst 


Hj 


Qu'il rendit, 


That he should 


CD 



Que ns rendissions, 


That we sheuld 


pL- 

CD 


Que vs rendissiez, 


That you should 


>* 


Qu'ils rendissent, 


That they should 




INFINITIF 


PRESENT. 




Eecevoir, To receive. 


Bendre, To render. 


PASSE. 




Avoir regu, 


To have received. 




Avoir rendu, 


To have rendered. 





PARTICIPE PRESENT. 

Eecevant, Keceiving. Eendant, Kendering. 

PASSE. 

Eegu, regue, ayant regu, Eeceived, having received. 
Eendu, rendue, ayant rendu, Eendered, having rendered. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 99 

Verbes Pronominaux— Reflected Verbs. 

All active verbs expressing an act of which a 
person can be the object, may be conjugated in 
the reflected form. We can say je me coupe, je 
m^eveille, je m^aime : I cut myself, I awake myself, 
I love myself; but we cannot say je me hois, I 
drink myself; je me finis, I finish myself. Conse- 
quently, the verb cannot be reflected when the 
action only affects things. 

Reflected verbs are conjugated in all their tenses 
with a double pronoun of the same person, placed 
before the verb : first, the subject or nominative ; 
next, the objective ; thus : je me, tu te, il se, nous 
nous, vous vous, Us se. Etre is the auxiliary, and 
the conjugation is made in the way prescribed, ac- 
cording to the termination of the infinitive. 

Je m'aime, tu te rendais, vous vous battrez, 

Tu t'es flatte, qu'il se soit blesse, qu'elle se fftt tuee. 

The limits of an elementary work such as this 
will not allow tables of irregular verbs. These 
will be found in most of the large text books, to 
which our little volume is a mere introduction. — 
We have said enough about the verbs to enable 
the student to conjugate all regular verbs, whether 
active, passive or neuter. Let him construe as 
many sentences as possible, introducing new words 
in all their tenses. This will do more to familiarize 



100 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

him with the genius of the language than if he 
were to combine thousands of words with a lim- 
ited number of verbs, for the verb is the soul of 
speech. 



L'Adverbe. 

Adverbs are indeclinable, and are generally 
placed after the verb which they modify ; except 
those of interrogation, which precede the verb. 

ADVERBS MOST COMMONLY USED. 

Ailleurs, alentour, alors, aujourd'hui, auparavant, 
Elsewhere, around, then. to-day. before, 

aupr&s, aussi, aussitot, autant, autrefois, autrement, 
near. also, presently, as much, formerly, otherwise, 
beaucoup, bien, bientot, combien, comment, 
much, many. well. soon. how much. how. 
davantage, dedans, dehors, deja, demain, 

more. within. without, already, to-morrow, 

desormais, dessous, dessus, dorenavant, encore, 
henceforth, under it. upon it. for the future, again. (1) 
enfin, ensemble, .ensuite, fort, gu&re,, 

finally, together, then, afterwards, very, but little, 
hier, ici, jadis, jamais, la loin, maintenant, 

yesterday, here, of old. never, there, far. now. 
meme, mieux, moins, ne, (2) ou, partout, 

even, better. less. not. where, everywhere, 
pas, point, peu, plus, plutot, presque, quelque, 
not. little, more, rather, almost, however. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 101 

souvent, tant, tantot, tard, toujours, 

often. so many, by and by. late. always, ever. 

tout, tres, (3) trop, volontiers, y, 

wholly, as. very. too much. willingly. there. 

Note 1. Encore is used also in the sense of 
still, yet) more. Ex : II est encore la, He is still 
there. II a encore une lieue a faire, He has yet 
one league to go. Avez-vous encore du ble ? 
Have you some more wheat ? 

2. JVe, pas, point. These three negatives are 
used singly, or ne is combined with one of the 
others. JVe is the weakest and ne point the 
strongest. 

The verb empecher (to prevent,) and the con- 
junctive expressions a moms que (unless,) de peur 
que, de crainte que (for fear that,) require ne after 
them. Tempecherai qifil ne vienne, I will prevent 
his coming ; de crainte qtfil rtoublie, for fear that 
he may forget; a moins qu^il ne promette, unless 
he promises. 

JVe is also required after autre) autrement, plus, 
mieiiX) moim, meilleur, and the verbs craindre, 
avoir peur,, trembler, apprehender, followed by a 
subjunctive. II parte autrement quHl rtagit, plus 
qu\l rtagit) mieux qiCil rtagit, moias quHl rtagit, 
II est meilleur qxCon ne croit, Je tremble qiCil ne 
vienne. 

Ne is used as in the above sentences, when no 



102 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

negative accompanies the preceding proposition ; 
otherwise the first example would read : II ne 
parte pas autrement qiCil agit. 

After the verbs craindre, avoir peur, trembler, 
apprehender, we use ne pas, instead of ne, when 
we desire the accomplishment of the action ex- 
pressed by the second verb. For example, the 
sentence quoted above : Je tremble qitfil ne vienne, 
means I tremble lest he should come, whereas Je 
tremble qiCil ne vienne pas, would mean, I tremble 
lest he should not come. When rien, nothing — 
personne, nobody — ni, neither, nor — come after^he 
verb, we use ne instead of ne pas. 

3. Tres, bien Both of these adverbs signify 
very, but ires can modify only an adjective or an 
adverb. Bien is used before nouns as well as ad- 
jectives and adverbs. 

Besides these adverbs, there are many more, 
formed from adjectives by adding ment to them. 
They generally correspond to the English adverbs 
in ly. Ex : joliment, poliment : prettily, politely. 
When the adjective ends with a consonant, the 
feminine termination is given before ment, as gra- 
cienx, gracieusement, graceful, gracefully ; sot, sot- 
tement, foolish, foolishly. Certain words are com- 
bined and used as adverbs. They are called locu- 
tion adverbiale. Such are a jamais, for ever ; a la 
fin, at last ; a present, at present, etc. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 103 

LA PREPOSITION. 

The preposition is invariable, and serves to 
express the relations existing between different 
words. The most frequently used are : 

A, at, to; apres, after; attendu, considering; avant, 
before ; avec, with. ; chez (precedes moi, toi, etc.,) at or 
to one's house; contre, against; dans, in; de, of; 
depuis, since ; derriere, behind ; des, from ; devant, 
before (in front of;) durant, during; en, in; entre, be- 
tween ; envers, towards ; hormis, except ; hors, out 5 
past ; malgre, in spite of ; moyennant, provided ; no- 
nobstant, notwithstanding ; outre (que,) beside (that ;) 
par, by ; parmi, among ; pour, for ; pendant, while ; 
sans, without ; sauf, save ; selon, according to ; sous, 
under ; suivant, agreeably to ; sur, on ; touchant, 
touching ; vers, about ; vis-a-vis, opposite. 

The locution prepositive is an assemblage of 
words doing the office of a preposition ; such are 
en faveur de, in favor of; quant 0, as for, etc. 

LA CONJONCTION. 

The conjunction connects the different parts of 
a sentence and is invariable. The most used are : 

Ainsi, thus, so; car, for; cependant, yet; comme, as; 
ni, neither, nor ; done, then ; et, and ; lorsque, when ; 
mais, but ; ne anmoins, nevertheless ; or, now ; pour- 
tant, however ; quand, when ; quoique,, albeit ; si, if ; 
sinon, else. 

Jhi reste, as for the rest ; par consequent, conse- 
quently ; a moins que, unless, etc., are conjunctive 
expressions. 



104 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

^INTERJECTION. 

This invariable word expresses sudden emotions* 
Ha! expresses surprise. Ah! cue! helas ! pain 

or sorrow. Oh ! ah ! admiration. Fi ! displeasure. 

Paix ! chut ! impose silence. Hola ! serves to 

call ; and He bien ! to interrogate. 

IDIOMS. 

Every language has its idioms — that is, certain 
forms peculiar to itself, by which to express certain 
ideas. These forms, therefore, cannot be trans- 
lated literally; they must be learned without regard 
to the sense of the separate words. Thus it is 
with the formal salutations : 

Comment vous portez vous ? How do you do ? 

Which means, literally, How do you carry your- 
self? But we say, literally, with more familiarity : 

Comment etes vous ? How are you ? 

Comment cela va-t-il? How goes it? 

Comment va ? How goes ? 

Speaking of the weather, temperature, &c, we 
say in French, II fait chaud^froid : It makes heat, 
cold, instead of (il est) it is warm, cold ; using the 
noun instead of the adjective. 

So it is with the sensations of the mind and 
body. We say fai froid^ fai chaud, fai peur, 
fax faim, fai honte, using a noun with the verb 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 105 

avoir, and meaning I have (a feeling or sensation 
of) cold, heat, fear, hunger, shame; whilst the 
English use the verb to be (etre) with an adjective, 
expressing the condition of the nominative, as being 
hot, cold, afraid, hungry, &c. 

But froid and chaud being adjectives as well as 
nouns, we use them with the verb etre when speak- 
ing of inanimate objects or parts of a body — that 
is, objects having no volition or individual power 
of feeling. Thus, speaking of a man whom we 
see shivering or perspiring, we will translate 

That man is cold (or warm,) by 
Cet liomme a froid (chaud ;) 

But speaking of a dead man, we will say, 

Cet homme est /void, est chaud) 

Because a dead body's state is one of being, not 
of feeling. For the same reason we say sa tete, 
sa main, sont froides, because the head, the hand, 
can have no individual feeling, being parts of a 
whole. 

Le marbre est froid, Marble is cold. 

We will not dwell on the French idioms, they 
are too numerous. We have concluded, however, 
to add a chapter on the formation of tenses, and a 
table of the principal irregular verbs, which will 
be of important help to the student. 



106 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

Our object, in writing this little book, has been 
to give the student some rules on pronunciation, 
and to make him familiar with the simplest rules 
of grammar ; let him exercise in those, particu- 
larly the verbs, until he is familiar with them. — 
Then, translate in the following manner : take a 
French text and translate a sentence, word for 
word, using a dictionary ; then reduce this literal 
translation to correct English, by studying the 
general sense, and transcribe it into a separate 
copy-book. After several pages have been thus 
written, say the work of one or two weeks, put 
away the French book, and translate this English 
into French, with the help of the dictionary, but 
resisting the temptation to consult the French 
text. Then compare the version with the original. 
More will be learned in this manner, in six months, 
than by memorizing sentences during a year. 



Of the Formation of Tenses. 

The tenses of French verbs are divided into two 
classes : the Temps primitifs (primitive tenses,) 
which are five in number, and the temps derives^ 
which are formed or derived from the primitive 
tenses. The primitive tenses are : 

Le present de l'Infinitif, which forms two 
tenses, to wit : 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 107 

1st, Le futur absolu (first future,) by changing 
the final r, re, or oir, in rai, ras, ra, rons, rez, ront. 
Ex: aimer; j'aimerai ; finir, tu finiras; recevoir, 
nous recevrons; rendre, vous rendrez, ils rendront. 

2d. Le conditionnel present, by changing these 
terminations in rais, rais, rait, rions, riez, raient. 

The Participe Present, which forms three 
tenses : 

1st. The three persons plural of the present of 
the Indicative, by changing ant in ons, ez, ent. — 
Ex : aimant, finissant, rendant, form nous aimons, 
vous finissez, ils rendent. Except the verbs of the 
third conjugation, which, in the third person plural 
of the Indicative, change evant in oivent. Ex : re- 
cevant, nous recevons, vous recevez, ils repoivent. 

2d. The Imparfait de VIndicatif, by changing 
ant in ais, ais, ait, ions, iez, aient. Ex : Paimais, 
nous Amissions, vous receviez, ils rendaient. 

3d. The Present du Subjonctif, by changing ant 
in e, e§, e, ions, iez, ent ; except the verbs of the 
third conjugriion, which change ant in oive, oives, 
owe, evions, eviez, oivent. Ex : que j'apercoive, 
que nous apercevions, que nous receviez, qu'ils 
repoivent' 

The Participe Passe, which forms all the com- 
pound tenses with the verb* Avoir or the verb etre : 
J'ai aime, tu avais fini, il est estime, nous serons 
punis. 



108 FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 

The Indicatif Present (the three persons sin- 
gular only are primitive,) which forms the Impera- 
tive by suppressing the personal pronouns fie, nous, 
vous, and the final s which characterizes the second 
person singular. 

The Passe Befini, which forms the Imparfait 
du Subjonctifi by changing the terminations ai, as, 
a, ames, ates, erent^ of the first conjugation, into 
asse, as$e$ 3 at^ assions^ assiez^ assent; and the ter- 
minations is, it, irnes, ites^ went, and t/s, ut, times? 
utes and urent of the other conjugations in isse, 
usse, it, ut, issions, ussions, issiez, ussiez, issent, 
ussent. Ex: que j'aimasse, que nous chantassions, 
que vous finissiez, quails repussent. 

All regular verbs can be conjugated according to 
these rules, the four models having been studied. 

The irregular verbs are those whose tense ter- 
minations are not in entire conformity with those 
of the models. They are divided into two classes : 

1st. Those whose primitive tenses are irregular, 
but still serve to form the other tenses according 
to the rules given above. They are, consequently, 
as easily conjugated as the regular verbs, since all 
we have to learn is the five primitive tenses, from 
which we can form the others. Should the verb 
lack one of the primitive tenses, the derived tenses 
formed from this primitive will naturally be want- 
ing also. The verb is then called defective. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



109 



2d. The second class of irregular verbs consists 
of those whose derived tenses are not formed from 
the primitives according to the rule. It is neces- 
sary, then, to study these irregularities carefully. 

The following table gives the primitive tenses 
of the irregular verbs of the first class ; the stu- 
dent will conjugate them according to the rules. 



IRREGULAR VERBS OF THE FIRST CLASS. 



SECOND CONJUGATION. 



INFINITIF 


PARTICIPE 


PARTICIPE 


INDICATIF 


PA.SSE 


PRESENT. 


PRESENT. 


PASSE. 


PRESENT. 


DEFINI. 


Bouillir, 


Bouillant, 


Bouilli, 


Je bous, 


Je bouillis. 


Couvrir, 


Couvrant, 


Couvert, 


Je couvre, 


Je couvris. 


Dormir, 


Dormant, 


Dormi, 


Je dors, 


Je dormis. 


Faillir, 


Faillant, 


Failli, 


Je faux, 


Je faillis. 


Fuir, 


Fiiyant, 


Fui, 


Je fuis, 


Je fuis. 


Mentir, 


Mentant, 


Menti, 


Je mens, 


Je mentis. 


OrTrir, 


Offrant, 


Offert, 


J'ofTre, 


J'offris. 


Ouvrir, 


Ou vr ant, 


Ouvert, 


J'ouvre, 


J'ouvris. 


Partir, 


Partant, 


Parti, 


Je pars, 


Je partis. 


Sentir, 


Sentant, 


Senti, 


Je sens, 


Je sentis. 


Servir, 


Servant, 


Servi, 


Je sers, 


Je servis. 


Sortir, 


Sortant, 


Sorti, 


Je sors, 


Je sortis. 


Souffrir, 


Somfrant, 


SourTert, 


Je souffre, 


Je souffris. 


Tressaillir, 


Tressaillant, 


Tressailli, 


Je tressaille, 


Je tressaillis, 


Yetir, 


Yetant, 


Vetu, 


Je vets, 


Je vetis. 



Pleuvoir, 



THIRD CONJUGATION. 

Pleuvant, Plu, II pleut, 



II plut. 



110 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. 



FOURTH CONJUGATION. 



INFINITIF 
PRESFNT. 

Absoudre, 

Battre, 

Braire, 

Gore, 

Conclure, 

Conduire, 

Confire, 

Connaitre, 

Coudre, 

Craindre, 

Croire, 

Croitre, 

Ecrire, 

Exclure, 

Joindre, 

Lire, 

Maudire, 

Medire, 

Mettre, 

Moudre, 

Naitre, 

Nuire, 

Paraitre, 

Plaire, 

Eepaitre, 

Eesoudre, 

Eire, 

Eompre, 

Sunire, 

Suivre, 

Taire, 

Teindre, 

Traire, 

Vaincre, 

Vivre, 



PARTICIPE 
PRESENT. 

Absolvant, 
Battant, 

NONE, 
NONE, 

Concluant, 

Conduisant, 

Confisant, 

Connaissant, 

Cousant, 

Craignant, 

Croyant, 

Croissant, 

Ecrivant, 

Excluant, 

Joignant, 

Lisant, 

Maudissant, 

Medisant, 

Mettanfr, 

Moulant, 

Naissant, 

Nuisant, 

Paraissant, 

Plaisant, 

Bepaissant, 

Besolvant, 

Eiant, 

Bom pant, 

Suffisant, 

Suivant, 

Taisant, 

Teignant, 

Trayant, 

Vain quant, 

Vivant, 



PARTICIPE 

PASSE. 

Absous, 
Battu, 

NONE. 

Clos, 

Concln, 

Conduit, 

Confit, 

Connu, 

Cousu, 

Craint, 

Cm, 

Cru, 

Ecrit, 

Exclu, 

Joint, 

Lu, 

Mandit, 

Medit, 

Mis, 

Moulu, 

Ne, 

Niri, 

Paru, 

Plu, 

Eepu, 

Eesolu, 

Ei, 

Eompu, 

Suffi, 

Suivi, 

Tu, 

Teint, 

Trait, 

"Vaincu, 

Vecu, 



INDICATIF 
PRESENT. 

J'absous, 
Je bats, 
II brait, 
Je clos, 
Je conclus, 
Je conduis, 
Je confis, 
Je connais, 
Je couds, 
Je Crains, 
Je crois, 
Je crois, 
J'ecris, 
J 7 exclus, 
Je joins, 
Je lis, 
Je mandis, 
Je medis, 
Je mets, 
Je mouds, 
Je nais, 
Je nuis, 
Je parais, 
Je plais, 
Je repais, 
Je resous, 
Je ris, 
Je romps, 
Je suffis, 
Je suis, 
Je tais, 
Je teins, 
Je trais, 
Je vaincs, 
Je vis, 



PASSE 
DEFINI. 

NONE. 

Je battis. 

NONE. 
NONE. 

Je conclus. 
Je conduisis. 
Je confis. 
Je connus. 
Je cousis. v 
Je craignis. 
Je crus. 
Je crus. 
J'ecrivis. 
J'exclus. 
Je joignis. 
Je lus. 
Je maudis. 
Je medis. 
Je mis. 
Je moulus. 
Je naquis. 
Je nuisis. 
Je parus. 
Je plus. 
Je repus. 
Je resolus. 
Je ris. 
Je rompis. 
Je sufris. 
Je suivis. 
Je tus. 
Je teignis. 

NONE. 

Je vainquis., 
Je vecus. 



FIRST STEPS IN FRENCH. Ill 

Verbs formed from some of the foregoing, by 
the addition of a prefix will be conjugated like the 
original verb. For instance, dire, to say, or redire, 
to say over ; vlaire, to please, or deplaire, to dis- 
please, come evidently under the same rule. 



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